When Only Hope Remains
by CapoExecutor
Summary: Following up on the Worst Ending for Disgaea 2.
1. Prologue

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2.

IIIII:IIIII

Blood stained the ground a crimson red as chaos reigned all around Yukimaru. In her mind, the events replayed over and over.

_Rozalin revealed herself to be the real Overlord Zenon before vaporizing the imposter…._

_Rozalin, reawakened as Overlord Zenon, then set her sights on Adell and the others before attacking…_

_Adell's fists of fire breaking every bone in Rozalin's body and giving her severe lacerations before she fell on the ground, dead in a bloody heap…_

_Rozalin's body turning into a lavender light that overtook Adell's senses before possessing his body as her new vessel, turning it into a …_

_The possessed Adell then advanced on Hanako, breaking her slender form as she screamed before devouring her…_

_Then Taro suffered the same fate as the possessed Adell broke him and devoured him as well…_

_Then Etna and Laharl, having charged themselves up to their maximum powers, both made a daring assault on Overlord Zenon with the intention of seizing the title as the God of All Overlords rather than free the possessed Adell…_

Yukimaru's thoughts were disrupted by the shockwaves of multiple explosions as Laharl and Etna unleashed her attacks simultaneously at Zenon, who retaliated with an array of black lightning. It seemed that both of them weren't the only ones who wanted the title as Saito the Shadow Master (Male Ninja), Johnson the Aragami (Sinner), Lance the Aegis Knight (Heavy Knight), Selma the Lilith (Succubus), Riley the Bahamut (Dragon), Keith the Omega Sentinel (Majin), Bolisk the Dreadnaught (Wood Golem), Belphor the Malchidael (Baciel), Selene the Bastet (Nekomata), and Henrietta the Beast Savior (Beastmaster) with an assortment of Hell Dragons (Zombie Dragons) under her command charged past Yukimaru to fight the Overlord God.

As the group engaged in combat against Zenon, Flonne was utilizing some of her magic on what was left of Taro and Hanako. Perhaps the fallen angel was trying to see where their souls went off to or maybe she was trying to bring them back to life, which was impossible in the kunoichi's point of view.

"Yukimaru!" a voice called out and Yukimaru turned to see Reiko, a fellow elite kunoichi landed next to her. "Why are you still here?! The others left and you should leave too before Adell gets you as well!"

"But what about them, de gozaru?" Yukimaru asked pointing to the battle where a number of their allies were fighting Overlord Zenon.

"Forget them! They're just greedy to become the new Overlord God but Adell is going to wipe them out sooner or later!" Reiko replied before noticing Flonne getting struck by a stray fireball, vaporizing her on the spot.

"Flonne!" Yukimaru yelled as the fallen angel was consumed in black flames.

"There's nothing we can do now!" Reiko spoke loudly. "They'll probably come back as Prinnies so don't worry about it.

"So who else is left now, de gozaru?" Yukimaru inquired.

"Just Mick, Catalina and Tink." Reiko replied. "One Battle Master, one Clerical Saint, and a talking frog that floats."

"How are we going to Adell's parents that Taro and Hanako are dead, de gozaru?" Yukimaru inquired.

"I don't know but if they happen to have been sent to Celestia as Prinnies, then they'll be fine." Reiko replied. "But right now, endless numbers of fleets and Overlords from all over the universes are heading this way and I don't want to be caught in their stampede to fight Adell. Let's take the advantage of this distraction to head back to Holt Village and plan out our next moves."

"Agreed, de gozaru." Yukimaru replied before she and Reiko quickly sprinted and withdrew from the battle being waged ahead of them.

IIIII:IIII

Suffice to say, both of Adell's surrogate parents were overwhelmed by the revelation regarding Overlord Zenon placed before them by Catalina, Mick, and Tink. In fact, the commotion that Yukimaru heard from within the house could only be Adell's mother losing her sanity and crying out in anguish upon hearing that the possessed Adell killed Taro and Hanako. The sounds of broken furniture and shattering glass could be heard along with the sounds of Adell's surrogate father trying without success to calm his wife down.

As the kunoichi looked at the horizon and seeing the sunset in a bloody red color, she could only think about what might be transpiring at the fake Overlord Zenon's castle.

"Yukimaru." A voice called out and the kunoichi turned to see her older brother Fubuki, garbed in attire that was a testament to the Snow Melody Clan, appear from the darkness. He wasn't alone as Reiko was also with him as well.

"Fubuki." Yukimaru replied.

"It's surely a dark time that awaits everyone now." The young man remarked as he handed his younger sister the Arcadia emblem that Adell had claimed as a prize while in the deepest recesses of Cave of Ordeals, fighting a Zombie King. "Reiko and I found this in the ruins before following the carnage".

"I had not expected to hear that the real Overlord Zenon and the woman named Rozalin were one and the same." Fubuki added.

"Now that I hear this from you, I see now that Overlord Zenon had been the main reason why the imposter destroyed our people long ago." Yukimaru replied, remembering on how Rozalin's eyes held the sparkle that was a trademark to only those of the Snow Melody Clan.

"Even now, more Overlords are still pouring into Veldime in massive numbers." Fubuki remarked. "But we cannot guarantee any hope that they will be able to defeat Adell. They're walking into a slaughter-pen as we speak."

"So what do we do now?" Yukimaru asked.

"Jin and his group have been able to recover the last six map pieces they need in order to chart a course to the Land of Carnage." Reiko replied. "It may be that Holt Village will not be safe should either the possessed Adell or the other Overlords coming into Veldime expand their maelstrom of chaos here. Everyone in Holt Village has already left for distant worlds."

"Everyone left, de gozaru?" Yukimaru inquired in surprise. "Is there anyone left now?"

"Only Adell's parents are left in Holt Village. Jin's group and those survivors who went with you are still here as well." Fubuki replied. "Hawkeye has the Gargantua ship ready to go."

"To go where?" Yukimaru asked.

"The Land of Carnage." Reiko replied. "It's a safe haven that should give us time to train ourselves in order to retake Veldime and fight Overlord Zenon."

IIIII:IIIII

"It's a good thing we came back from the Item World in time." Jin remarked as the Sword Master fitted the sixteen maps together. Next to him, the busty Space Knight Monique watched as Jin charted the course to the Land of Carnage.

III:FLASHBACK:III

"I don't think we'll need more people to come with us." Adell said as he addressed Jin. "But I do want to get the chance to reach the Land of Carnage that we've all heard about lately once Zenon is dealt with."

"I understand." Jin replied.

"As of now, I'm giving you some backup to make things easier." Adell spoke. "I'm sure Monique is more than willing to go with you."

"Who else is coming with me?" Jin inquired.

"Trent, Elise, Sara, and Montag." Adell replied. "A Prism Mage, A Prism Witch, A Trickster, and a Geo Master."

"It's a good combination." Jin remarked. "Personally, I thought only Monique, Sara, and Montag were enough."

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to have excessive firepower." Adell replied. "We only need six more maps. Be vigilant and good luck."

"Thanks and good luck in taking out Zenon." Jin replied in kind.

III:FLASHBACK ENDS:III

"Pity that this unfortunate turn of events is unexpected." Monique remarked. "Now we're all having to find refuge in this new land."

"I just hope Montag is alright." Jin replied, remembering on how the Geo Master had molested the Succubus group at the Empusa Bar in the Item World, causing them to attack the old man that Jin and Monique stepped in to get him out.

"You should've sent either me or Sara into those Mystery Rooms that time." Monique remarked. "I guess Montag didn't have much restraint, seeing on how he was surrounded like that."

Jin nodded before looking at the maps. "I think this set of routes might work but maybe Hawkeye has a better opinion."

"Ask him tomorrow morning, dear." Monique replied as the Space Knight placed an arm around the Sword Master's shoulder and leaning in to peck his cheek. "In the meantime, you really need to get some shut-eye."

Jin sighed a bit before placing the maps together back into the pocket in his traveler's mantle.

IIIII:IIIIII

At the ruins of the fake Overlord Zenon's palace…

Adell… or rather, Overlord Zenon herself watched as tens of thousands of Overlords surrounded her and attacking with striking coordination. Yet, despite being a bit taxed by some of Adell's followers, she managed to decimate her enemies with pure brutality, slashing their bodies and breaking them literally before feasting on some of her kills. Standing at seven feet tall and sporting a pair of gargoyle wings, the Overlord Goddess manipulated Adell's body with striking efficiency, utilizing a few of his skills such as his Soaring Fire technique. Overlords put up a deadly offense, yet it didn't do much justice against the demon before them.

"So, who else wants to die?" Overlord Zenon inquired with a disdainful sneer before getting response in the form of a massive assault from Overlords present as they used their strongest attacks simultaneously.

Amid the chaos, more fleets with their respective Overlords were arriving to join the fray, not knowing on how powerful their quarry really is.

IIII:IIIII

Should I continue this?


	2. Dull Reflection

Note: I don't own Disgaea.

IIII:IIIII

"How had it come to this?"

It was a question that Adell's surrogate mother kept asking herself mentally as she gazed heavily at the window where a red sky loomed due to the crimson sun high above. Due to the lack of sleep last night, she was exhausted, though it was mostly due to her venting everything within her out with such heated rage. As sudden as her outburst was, the woman now felt very empty. It was a hollow feeling that mothers tend to have when losing their children, biological and surrogate. The fact of the matter is that she lost all three in one day. Two were killed and one beyond not only redemption but perhaps one that could never be saved. No, she could still find some way to forgive Adell. It wasn't his fault that the real Overlord Zenon within Rozalin now controlled him with an absolute grip.

It was surely a dark day when Mick, Catalina, and Tink told her and her husband on what had transpired. As if losing your children wasn't enough, additional mention of Veldime turning into a maelstrom of warfare due to endless numbers of Overlords, Demon Lords, and countless others coming for the title that Overlord Zenon possessed. Of course, the loss of her children seemed too fresh and heavy compared to everything else that goes on.

'Oh Serion, perhaps you could tell me what to do.' The woman thought to herself, remembering her sisterly relationship to Adell's real mother. 'Are we really cursed by fate still?'

Outside…

"There's no telling on how the conflict is going to end." Mick remarked as he watched Adell's surrogate father planted a gravestone with the names of Adell, Taro, Hanako, and Rozalin engraved on the surface. "Why did you put Adell's name on that stone anyways? He's still alive."

"Alive in body but not in spirit." The man replied as he placed a large wooden cross behind the gravestone. "His fate is even worse than death itself. To be trapped in the grip of Overlord Zenon and not able to break free is a type of hell that one could only wish for on their enemies."

Footsteps echoed and both turned to see Jin and Monique behind them. The Sword Master held a brass jar that had incense sticks burning while the Space Knight held a bouquet of flowers in her arms. Mick nodded to Adell's father before both stood aside, allowing Jin and Monique to pay their respects.

"Thank you." Adell's father whispered as Monique made a sign of the cross while Jin bowed deeply on one knee.

"Death is not the end, but only a transition." Jin replied softly as he stood up.

IIIII:IIIII

"So this is the ship Gargantua?" Catalina inquired as Hawkeye jumped from the mast onto the port ledge.

"She's all set and ready to set sail." The gunslinger replied. "All supplies and everything that can be packed have been loaded on board last night."

"I'm surprised that you and the others have managed to get everything accounted for in such a short time." Catalina replied before noticing Jin and Monique approaching from a distance, carrying a large treasure trunk.

"Hi all!" Monique greeted.

"There's plenty of room still for some procrastinators." Hawkeye remarked as Monique and Jin boarded the ship.

"All of the stuff in the warehouse has been sent to the Land of Carnage." Jin spoke as he carefully stored the treasure trunk beneath the deck. "Let see… we have Laser Blade, Sunrise Sword, Infernal Armor, Kamikaze Suit…"

"Didn't you have a red Excalibur?" Hawkeye inquired.

"It was a severely damaged one that Sara stole from one of the Item Gods. Jin managed to salvage the metal and used it to modify his Muramasa to a new maxed-out level." Monique replied, pointing to the sword hanging off the Sword Master's belt.

"Sometimes, junk has its values and the quote of it being valuable to another has its benefits." Jin commented.

"Anyways." Monique spoke as she turned towards Catalina. "Are the others coming to?"

"Trent, Elise, Sara, and Alastor are already on board, running inventory on our supplies." Catalina replied before turning to look at Holt Village where she saw Adell's surrogate parents, Mick, and Tink approaching them with cargo and belongings of their own. The Clerical Saint caught sight of Irene, an elite Freischutz of the Archer class who had been under weather since the debacle at the Shinra Tower and had been at home recuperating from her illness.

"Feeling better, Irene?" Catalina called out.

"I'm fine, thanks." The girl replied as she boarded the Gargantua with the others in tow. Despite her soft reply, Catalina sensed that Irene was holding back on something.

It wasn't long before Adell's surrogate parents boarded the ship as the last passengers from Holt Village. With everyone accounted for, Hawkeye signaled for the ship to sail. The Gargantua, with a mind of its own, responded by soaring into the open portal at breakneck speed.

"ATTENTION, PASSENGERS! THE ETA WILL BE FIVE HOURS DUE TO THE INFLUX OF PORTALS THAT ARE IN THE ROUTE TO OUR DESTINATION. UNTIL THEN, PLEASE RELAX. FOR LUNCH TODAY, PLEASE HELP YOURSELVES TO TABLES IN THE DINING HALL OF THE SHIP."

IIIIII:IIIIIII

Mick sat in his quarters and stared blankly at his equipment, which consisted of his Master Axe, Infernal Armor, and the Orion Belt that had the Exodus emblem attached to its center.

Having been a hardened warrior since he was ten, Mick had proficiency in his axe skills and few could ever rival him. His old Master Axe had been his favorite weapon before it was shattered in a fight against a number of Wood Golems, a price to pay for his victory. By the time, Adell's surrogate father hired him to help accompany Adell, Mick had to resort to using a sword. It was during their ventures into the Dark World that Mick managed to salvage broken parts of a Beam Axe before using them to repair and augment his Master Axe beyond its maximum potential. From that point on, Mick enjoyed the thrill of the many battles that followed in both Veldime and in the Item World, always the first to deliver the offense against the enemies he and the others faced.

The chain of events regarding Overlord Zenon had been a shock to him as well as the many others that accompanied Adell. While it was tempting for him to run at the possessed Adell, the Battle Master had to thank Reiko's judgment for saving his life.

Speaking of his life, Mick seemed rather eager to venture into the Land of Carnage another reason, particularly when it revolved around a certain woman named Emiria, who he once met and gave shelter to some time ago. She was of the Lady Fighter class, counterpart to the Male Warrior, and her skills circled around the spear. Last time they saw each other, Emiria said that she was training hard against the demons within the Land of Carnage.

'By now, she's probably an Iron Maiden.' Mick thought to himself. 'Though we became the best combatants in all of Veldime, that period was short-lived when the real Overlord Zenon awoke.'

Getting to his feet, Mick felt his stomach growl at him and decided to head into the dining hall of the ship for a nice meal.

IIIIII:IIIIIII

"Think we have a chance against Zenon once we've ascended to new heights?" Trent piped up as he and Elise sat in the supply room of the ship. The Prism Witch looked from her work in decorating the golden Universal Orb she wore around her neck.

"Even with our skills, teamwork, and equipment, she could still beat us since Adell's memories are now hers to use as a resource." Elise replied. "We might have to develop new tactics."

"What a letdown to hear that Zenon could use Adell's memories." Trent remarked as he took the shiny Providence glasses off his eyes.

"It's not all hopeless yet." Elise replied before both heard footsteps approach them and turned to see the Master Thief Sara.

"What's not hopeless?" Sara inquired. Behind her, floating off the ground was the Geo Master Alastor.

"Regarding on whether we will be able to retake Veldime and defeat Zenon." Trent replied.

"It's a tough question to answer, considering that she has Adell's memories and would know how we fight." Alastor spoke as he looked at his Sage's Staff. "In the Land of Carnage, there is a set of legendary weapons that surpass the best equipment we all have at the moment. The greatest challenge would be the abnormal power in the enemies we'll be facing in that realm."

"Are they really that strong?" Elise asked.

"Beyond a doubt that they are above the enemies we've faced in Veldime." Sara replied. "But as long as we all stick together, we'll be able to overcome them and surpass our own limits."

"By the way, how much money do we have?" Alastor inquired.

"Exactly six hundred sixty-six billion, six-hundred sixty-six million, six hundred sixty-six thousand, and six hundred sixty six Hell Dollars." Elise replied.

"Wow, that's a lot of sixes." Sara remarked. "With all the battles we went through in the many places of Veldime, the Cave of Ordeals, the Dark World, and the Item World, I wasn't sure what the massive amount of funds would be used for now that we have the best equipment."

"We all got distracted with so many side-quests and the like." Trent remarked as he took the Felicitation out from Catalina's bag. "I remember the fight against Priere and managed to snatch this afterwards at the cathedral. I can't believe that Catalina won that from me in a bet about passing the Military Fund Bill in the Dark Assembly. I could've sworn that she rigged the game after seeing her carry that bag of gold with her."

"It's the Dark Assembly and anything is possible." Sara giggled.

"Yeah, yeah." Trent replied with a bit of annoyance before placing the Felicitation back into Catalina's bag. "Remind me not to enter bets that I can't control."

"Anyways, I brought Usagi's Journal with me." Alastor spoke before pulling out a shiny platinum covered book from his traveling bag. "Here are some of the battle logs he hopes to win a Pulitzer for."

IIIII:IIIII

"Saito was power hungry for that title and got killed in the end, along with the others that fought Overlord Zenon." Reiko spoke as she and Fubuki sat on the crates stacked on the starboard of the ship. Opposite to them was Jin, who listened intently on the events while leaning on the ship's balcony.

"He was too arrogant and reckless." The Sword Master remarked. "It was apparent when Adell invited him into the group."

"But we kept silent about it with the exception of Yukimaru, who seemed a bit vocal about letting him in." Reiko replied.

"Is she still shaken up by that turn of events, Fubuki?" Jin asked.

"Yes, she was." The young ninja replied. "But my younger sister is made of stronger stuff and it's not very hopeless despite how things look. It's a good thing that she's asleep in her quarters and we get to speak openly about this."

"How are things between you and Monique?" Reiko inquired.

"Everything is fine." Jin replied, blushing a bit.

"How far have you two gotten, bro?" Reiko inquired with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Jin merely looked at his younger sister with annoyance before deciding to give his response.

"She's been teaching me a good portion of her healing magic in exchange for some of my complex sword skills. Monique is quite a knowledge-seeker." Jin replied.

"After seeing Monique excel in fire, ice, wind, star, and healing magic to completion, she might have that power-seeking hunger as well." Reiko remarked, a bit unsatisfied with Jin's answer but decided not to push him.

"In a good way that is, Reiko." A feminine voice replied, catching their attention as the blond-haired Monique appeared on the deck with two beverages in her hand before handing one to Jin.

"Thanks, Monique." Jin spoke as the busty Space Knight sat next to him. Having been childhood friends, both Jin and Monique grew up in a small town a far distance from Holt Village. Monique sought to be a Magic Knight while Jin delved deeply into the arts and way of the sword that was true among the Samurai class. Eventually, their friendship would blossom into something much more, yet both decided to take things at a steady pace. Well, at least Jin did.

It was perhaps by chance that Jin and Monique joined up with Adell's group at the Dallos River and, during their venture into the Caverns of Evil, Jin's younger sister, the kunoichi Reiko, joined the group.

Reiko had the makings of a true assassin partly due to her excellent skills in blending into the shadows and striking unsuspecting enemies without warning. Her training in the Caverns of Evil also gave her the abilities in intentionally willing the emotions of fear into her targets before making her critical moves, hence the red pupils in her eyes. Jin had been at the receiving end of his younger sister's glares and knew what it felt like to be paralyzed on the spot. Like Fubuki safeguarding Yukimaru after the Snow Clan's demise, Jin had done the same for Reiko after the deaths of their parents fifteen years ago.

Fubuki was a serious young man who seemed to have lost a bit of his hell-bent fury.

The hardened ninja from Snow Melody, despite his years in devoting his entire self into his mission to kill Overlord Zenon, did think about the possibility of life after his mission while recuperating in Holt Village. He and Yukimaru had planned to return to Snow Melody once Zenon was dead. After hearing about recent events, which included the revelation that the deceased imposter claiming to be Zenon was behind the Snow Clan's demise, Fubuki had to make a choice regarding the future for himself and his younger sister.

What good is it to Snow Melody if you and Yukimaru end up dead?

It was a question that Reiko had asked him before she told him the same two words that Yukimaru said: keep living. Snow Melody may not return to the way it exactly was before but both he and Yukimaru were its last children and survival meant everything now. Jin told him that passing on into memory would only be like an echo, doomed to be forgotten over the course of time. But living long enough to bring Snow Melody back would be determined by his actions from here on out.

"Well, it's onto a new frontier of sorts and, when we leave, we would have gained more than what we started with." Fubuki spoke as he peered up into the sky.

"So what's the plan?" Monique piped up.

"For starters, we battle the denizens in the Land of Carnage to become more powerful than ever before." Reiko replied. "Should there be any side-quests that will help us in our primary goal, we'll also take them on as well."

"It's a fine plan, sis." Jin replied before feeling Monique lean into him.

"But you better not get too addicted into the thrill of battle, Jin." The Space Knight cooed as Jin placed an arm around her shoulder.

"I'll stay in line, Monique." Jin replied, relaxing on the deck and slowly counting down the time left before they reached the Land of Carnage.

IIIII:IIIII

It was an exhilarating feeling for Tink as he managed to regain his old body once more due to Fubuki's counter-curse. The blond-haired Frenchman, garbed in the attire of the nobility, calmly walked towards his quarters after engorging himself in the dining hall. Walking with a full stomach and a content expression, Tink could only see the one downside in being back in his normal form again. He wouldn't be able to carry out his perverted antics to the same degree when he was a floating frog, ranging from flying under the skirts of the females in close proximity to peeking on them in the shower almost undetected.

But then again, perhaps he could take the role as a player with his charming appearance and the like. His thoughts, however, were interrupted by voices coming from the almost closed doors to Catalina's quarters as he passed by, recognizing Catalina talking to Irene. The doors were slightly ajar, allowing him to peek inside to see the Saint and the Freischutz talking to each other.

"Just a bit shocked that Adell and Rozalin…"

"I know." Catalina whispered before finding Irene hugging her as she sobbed uncontrollably.

"I can't believe Taro is gone!" Irene wept as she buried her face in Catalina's embrace. "I didn't get the chance to say that I loved him!"

Catalina could only hold Irene tightly as the Freischutz let her anguish pour out.

"Back when we were battling our way to the top of the Shinra Tower, I wanted to tell him the feelings I had for him ever since we were little." Irene whimpered.

"There, there, Irene." Catalina whispered as the Saint did her best to comfort the Freischutz.

Outside the door, Tink could only listen before getting lost in his thoughts.

'Poor Irene. I guess everyone is saddened with so many of our friends dead.' The blond man thought to himself as he slowly made his way to his quarters. 'Just like the way I lost my childhood friend Rozalin, I can relate to what she's going through.'

When they were going to the Coliseum, Catalina invited Irene, another local of Holt Village, to accompany her and Adell eagerly took her into the group. Tink could remember that Taro, despite his newfound admiration to Rozalin, still cared a lot for the young girl, always teaming up with her to take on a multitude of enemies while both did their best in protecting each other. Later, when she fell ill, Taro had been at her side the whole time and seemed reluctant to leave with Adell to go face Zenon. The young demon boy had once said that Irene meant a lot to him and still did.

Upon reaching his quarters, Tink could only think about what he could do while in the Land of Carnage. He had seen too much combat and bloodshed in a manner that he wished not to see again so fighting new enemies is definitely out of the option.

"I guess I can check out what other things I can do for the group." He muttered to himself.

With not much to do, the blond man merely stretched his muscles before jumping into his bunk and fell asleep.

"ATTENTION! GARGANTUA IS ENGAGING THE BAAL PIRATES. PLEASE REMAIN IN YOUR QUARTERS." The P.A. speaker system announced.

And among the passengers on the ship, only Tink actually complied, ignoring the running footsteps echoing past his room.

IIIII:IIIII

With Adell's surrogate parents at the gunnery, the Gargantua unleashed a barrage of cannon fire, keeping the Baal Pirate Ship from closing in. Catalina, Irene, Hawkeye, and Sara provided support fire, unleashing the fire element within their Zielregen and Inferno attacks. Trent, Elise, Alastor, and Monique took a different approach with their abilities, combining fire, wind, ice, and star magic into a deadly stream that crashed into the ship of the Baal Pirates. The Baal Pirates retaliated with a rain of their Grand Sword skills as a sky of blades descended on the Gargantua only to be deflected as Yukimaru and Jin let loose two huge arcs of their Dimensional Slash skills in response while Fubuki and Mick used their Boomerang Axe attacks to clear a good number of the swords. Most of the enemy barrage was wiped out, allowing a few strays to pass harmlessly by the Gargantua.

"Our attacks aren't affecting them!" Trent yelled as he, Alastor, Elise, and Monique began using the Tera versions of their magic.

"They must be really strong to withstand that much." Fubuki replied as he eyed the cannons on the Baal ship.

"Fubuki, is there any chance that we can escape by sinking their ship?" Reiko inquired. "We could overload their cannons by shooting straight into them."

"I thought the same way." Fubuki replied. "Do you have enough explosives?"

"Leave it to me." Reiko replied as the Master Kunoichi vanished in a puff of smoke. Yet, Fubuki's eyes were able to see her soar at abnormally fast speeds through the air before reaching the cannons of the Baal Pirate ship. As quick as she left the ship, Reiko was back on board the Gargantua.

As the Baal Pirate ship fired, the cannons imploded, setting off a chain reaction that ripped the vessel in half. The Baal Pirates were caught by surprise before finding themselves falling into the endless depths of the dimensional route to the Land of Carnage.

As everyone cheered in relief, the P.A. system erupted.

"ALL PASSENGERS RETURN TO YOUR CABINS. ETA TO LAND OF CARNAGE IS TEN MINUTES. PLEASE PREPARE TO DISEMBARK WHEN WE MAKE LANDFALL."

Indeed, the attack from the Baal Pirates had gotten nearly everyone on their feet and, upon hearing that they were close to the Land of Carnage, the mood changed from relief to anticipation. Yet, no one on board was aware of a number of surprises awaiting them in the unfamiliar world.

IIII:IIIII

Not much yet, but more will come soon.


	3. IMPORTANT ALERT

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2.

IMPORTANT ALERT: ALL MY WORK WILL BE ON HIATUS UNTIL THE CHRISTMAS DUE TO MY LAST SEMESTER BEFORE GRADUATING WITH MY DEGREE. I'LL BE BACK DURING THE CHRISTMAS SEASON AND CHANGE THIS CHAPTER'S TITLE.

IIIII:IIIII

Adell opened his eyes, regaining consciousness to only feel himself suspended in complete darkness and bound by unseen chains that wrapped shackles around his arms. His legs were the only limbs on his body to remain an unchained, yet the fact that he couldn't see or feel any ground to walk on made any escape attempt impossible.

'Is this hell? It feels so cold.' Adell thought to himself.

"Welcome to my lair, child of sin." A feminine voice that dripped with evil echoed and Adell could see the darkness slightly illuminate to a dark purple-pink light. He was in a large chamber of sorts and the young demon slayer caught sight of a figure sitting on a throne made of bones with her legs crossed.

Pale blond hair stood behind her head and a pair of black eyes with red pupils stared at Adell from a beautiful yet cold emotionless face. The figure wore leather attire that hugged her figure tightly but left only her shoulders and arms completely exposed. It was Rozalin and yet it wasn't Rozalin.

'The real Overlord Zenon.' Adell thought bitterly, though it somewhat surprised him at first when he found out that the legendary "God of All Overlords" was actually female. 'Make that Goddess of All Overlords.' He thought to himself.

"You have crude ideas about hospitality, Rozalin." Adell replied.

"I am Overlord Zenon and I am a being of solitude!" Zenon snapped before raising her hand out and causing the chains binding Adell to painfully tighten.

Yet, the young demon slayer, having been through much worse conditions, could only smile as Overlord Zenon continued speaking, this time in a more calm voice.

"The one you know as Rozalin has and always will be a part of my being." Zenon continued. "But she was just a result of my rebirth into the Veldime's Snow Clan. It's a pity that demons cannot truly be killed but being trapped in the prison of your own mind is the same as being dead."

"What do you hope to achieve from this?" Adell inquired fiercely.

"That's something you'll see for yourself." Zenon replied. "And I certainly look forward to eradicating your surviving friends when I find them."

"You…!" Adell yelled with fury as he tried to break the chains around him without success. "I'll stop you and I'll bring Rozalin back, one way or another!"

"In your position, you can't do anything and don't say things that you can't back." Zenon spoke as she hovered close to Adell to caress his cheek with her right hand. "Rozalin is dead. You killed her after all."

That last sentence gave Adell a long pause. Zenon was right about him killing Rozalin. But then again, he painfully and regretfully did so to protect the others from the one person he had slowly and secretly fallen in love with.

_Sometimes, you kill someone out of love in order to save that person or to release him or her from the pain he or she has. The pain that comes from taking the life you hold dear and wish to otherwise protect reflects that attachment. In the end, it's sometimes the most merciful thing you can do as living in eternal suffering is not the kind of life a person wants to live in. Death is only a transition, not an end._

'Reiko once told me that after that incident in the Shinra Tower.' Adell thought, though he still felt guilty for what he did. 'Death is a transition…' The demon slayer wanted to laugh at the potential irony there if it were applied to Rozalin. 'She did tried to tell me to kill her if she lost control, though.'

"In the end, I might have been as an act of mercy." Adell muttered as he looked away, only feel the goddess place both hands on the sides of his face. Despite the physical softness he felt, Adell knew that it was the direct opposite as Zenon averted her captive's gaze back to her eyes.

Zenon smiled as her red eyes glared through Adell's eyes and the demon slayer's screams echoed in the mental prison that he was sealed in. But it wasn't of physical pain. Rather, it was what he was seeing as the Goddess of Overlords continued to ravage his mind with complete ease. Mental attacks weren't new to Adell but he was very much unprepared for such a heavy magnitude. The excruciating pain on his mind was too much, yet he felt himself unable to break as death escaped him, denying Adell the desired end of the torment he was now in.

Since their unholy union, Adell belonged to Zenon and the demonic goddess was truly reveling in the experience of possessing the young man's body while unleashing the undisturbed torment of hell on his soul. Having seen the memories of her last reincarnation, Zenon did find a bit of value within Adell that was enough to keep him alive at least.

"Now then, child of sin, the only thing that's left is the road to perdition that we will travel down together." Zenon spoke before continuing to torture her captive while controlling his body in the realm of space and time that was Veldime.

III:III

The Liliths, Skeleton Dragons, and the hordes of other demon types continued to swarm across the fields of corpses as they attacked the possessed Adell. Overlords and Demon Lords continued to pour in without an end.

Asagi, having watched the mass movements from the scope of a discarded sniper rifle, noticed that they were only running to their deaths as the possessed Adell seemed to have infinite energy that might have come from the apparent exploitation of multiple factors that included but not limited to the Dark Assembly for stronger enemies and statistic reincarnations, the Dark Court for more felonies, and constant trips into the Item World for better equipment. It was evolution at its best in creating a being that couldn't be defeated when fighting nonstop and its worst with the oceans upon oceans of blood being spilled all over Veldime.

It was bad enough that Zetta had left her in Veldime with the suggestion that she become stronger. It was worse when Adell soundly defeated her without much effort. Now it was even more terrible for Asagi to see two facts. First, she was completely outclassed and outgunned in comparison to all the demons and overlords that entered Veldime. Second, her hopes in achieving the same status on par with people like Zetta, Laharl, and Adell had plummeted down to zero.

Thoughts were interrupted as Asagi felt the earth tremble and shake. From out of the ground, tens of thousands of huge stone monoliths rose to form hundreds of giant statues with horns and black lightning crackled across the red-blood sky.

"No, that's…!" Asagi quipped as the statues, gaining long capes from out of nowhere, began to move towards the carnage that the possessed Adell was creating. A black Prinny with dark eyes and possessing such immensely terrifying power lead the army of Baal copies in battle.

Amid getting out of their impending pathway, Asagi reached the bank of the Dallos River before watching the large Baal army march off into battle. The water seemed to run clear instead of the red color that was normal for Dallos River.

"I wonder when he'll give me back my game if he survives.()" Asagi sighed in depression, unaware of the ground she was standing on was close to collapse. As soon as she started to move, the bank gave way and Asagi slipped into the water. The current hindered resistance and Asagi noticed the blue light of a portal under the water before getting pulled into it.

Nearby, the blue-haired Pleinair didn't seem to pay any notice to Asagi being pulled underneath the water right in front of her. The young demon girl, having been forced to flee the destruction of the news station she worked at, was mere soaking her feet in the water. In the middle of the river, Usagi was sitting on Samme's back while fishing. The former newscast crew seemed rather oblivious to the chaos in Veldime but, with their news station destroyed, none of them could really care as there were other job opportunities out in the world.

After Samme devoured the salmon caught earlier, Usagi quickly wrote his catch's measurements on a small record book. The demon rabbit plushie was a bit depressed that he lost his old journal of battle logs but decided to move onto better things.

"Usagi! I see something shiny down here and it's rising to the surface!" Samme called out as he swam around the river.

"Can you tell me what it is?" Usagi asked.

"It looks like a-" Samme was about to say before the demon shark plushie was pulled into the blue portal that he was about to identify, taking a yelling Usagi with him.

Relaxation broken, Pleinair looked up to see Usagi and Samme vanish into the water. Curious, the young demon girl waded into the water and felt something pull at her ankles and Pleinair saw the blue glow of a portal before vanishing underwater.

A few minutes later, a small boat was slowly crossing through the water.

"I'm telling you that it's not safe there anymore." A fat man dressed in the attire of a movie director was saying.

"It's not fair that Baal stole my spotlight to shine like a star.()" Axel grumbled. "I can't believe you knocked me out, Director."

"Be glad that you didn't end up like our cameraman when he filmed those close-up angles of Marjoly's figure." The Director replied. "But that's nothing compared to what Zenon is doing! The Dark Hero has to live for tomorrow! You're no good if you end up dead!"

Axel sighed but he couldn't deny the common sense that the Director was giving to him. While the Dark Hero did enjoy getting into danger, it wouldn't be worth the cost of his life.

"Alright then." Axel finally spoke. "But what do we do with the footage we have?"

The Director looked at the camera for a moment before looking at Axel. But before he could say anything, the boat began to rock and both men noticed the blue glow illuminating the water. A second later, they sank into the water with the boat into the portal and the water of the Dallos River closed over them.

An hour passed and a green Prinny on a rocket pack landed on the bank of the Dallos River. Having detected a strange anomaly on his sensors earlier and seeing four bursts on the monitor of his equipment, Kurtis ran some routine scans in where he felt the source was the strongest.

"When I left Veldime to deal with the clones made by the Earth Defense Force, I wasn't able to investigate this unknown anomaly thoroughly. But I must say that carrying out the prototype construction of Spiral Displacement Ordinance in that base was worth the time." Kurtis muttered to himself. "I just hope it's enough to negate whatever is here."

Pulling out a large emerald-colored bomb from his pouch, Kurtis hovered above the water on his small wings before activating the ten second timer. But a split second later, the blue light of the same portal opened and Kurtis felt himself getting dragged into the water. The SDO prototype, having completed the ten second delay, went critical before unleashing a large burst of light and crystalline particles that neutralized the unknown portal. And the water of the Dallos River, having been clear earlier, slowly began to regain its normal red color.

IIIII:IIIII

() partial Disgaea 3 reference.

It was during the evacuation from Hurricane Ike that I managed to write this short chapter.

Even though the real Zenon always says that "I'm a being of solitude" line and other related dialogue, it would be boring not to give her some character. Surely, the real Zenon wasn't born with the same persona that she has as an adult and I do tend to see Rozalin as the other side of the same coin.

Read, review, and criticize.


	4. Calm Before the Storm

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2.

IIIIIIIII::::::IIIIIIIIII

After the Gargantua docked onto the port, everyone took a good look around the new world that they were in. The sky was blue and the sun was shining brightly overhead, contrast to the skies back in Veldime. Ahead of them was the Prinny Camp with its enormous tents and the numerous piles of crates stacked on each other.

Irene, having being the first to step foot onto the Land of Carnage, saw more than just Prinnies and the young girl's eyes widened in complete surprise as she saw a familiar young boy with short horns and wearing a cow-printed cloak and baggy shorts, helping a Prinny set some of the equipment in a crate down. For a moment, Irene thought she was seeing a ghost but after seeing the boy take a swig from a nearby drink bottle, there's no doubt in her mind that it was neither a ghost nor an illusion.

"T-T-Taro?" Irene sputtered, catching the boy's attention as he turned around.

"I-Irene?" Taro whispered in complete surprise, his voice triggering the Freischutz's reflexes and emotions. The boy dropped the nearly empty bottle to the ground as he slowly walked towards her. Irene did very much the same thing and a second passed both were instantly running towards each other.

"Taro! Taro!" Irene cried, running up to Taro and throwing her arms around him. The palpable touch of flesh and clothing assured the Freischutz that it wasn't an illusion. Taro scooped the young girl off her feet as he spun around with her in his arms before setting her down.

"Irene!" Taro exclaimed joyfully, soothing the young girl, who cried softly, as he embraced her tightly. "It's alright. I'm here now, though I frankly don't know how."

"I must say, Taro. Looks like the angels brought you back as your normal self instead of a Prinny." Catalina remarked as she walked up to them, answering Taro's implied question. "Think of your "wimpy" demeanor as the difference maker, Taro."

"I was really surprised myself." Taro replied with a nervous grin. "I thought something bad might have come after."

"Your title has also changed. You're not Rozalin's slave anymore." Irene remarked slyly.

"Career change I guess." Taro replied with a grin.

"If you're here, then where's Hanako?" Catalina asked as Irene let go of him.

Taro smiled nervously as an orange Prinny walked into view next to him.

"Don't ask." The orange Prinny spoke with irritation. "Heh… to think that Taro's method of only knocking enemies out cold and sitting out of all the other things we did actually scored him high points with Lamington."

"Heaven felt like it ran on a different time rate than Veldime did." Taro added as Irene held his arm in her own.

Being a former angel herself, Catalina had a good idea on how long Taro had been up there.

"One day passed here but it felt like a month up there." Taro continued. "Flonne is alive but she's now an angel. Etna and Laharl have returned as Prinnies bound in a contract of servitude to her."

"What about the others that were in our group?" Irene asked.

"All of them are Prinnies that have to serve Flonne now. I don't know how that came to be." Taro replied.

IIIII::::IIIII

Inside a tent…

"Lemon soda, lemon tarts, lemonade, lemon cheese cake, lemon ice cream… put this in the freezer please." Elise called out as she tossed the package to Trent, who placed it in the refrigerator.

"Lemon cookies, lemon jelly, 1st edition of lemon fan-fiction…?" Elise looked at Sara, who was blushing very red. After flipping through the first page, the Prism Witch, cheeks flushing red, quickly closed the book upon seeing the warning indicating that the content was yuri-related. "Care to explain this, Sara?"

"I have nothing to do with it!" The Master Thief replied, throwing her hands up in defense.

"That's actually Alastor's." Trent spoke and, as Elise turned to the Geo Master, he quickly summoned the book out of Elise's hand and stashed it in his traveling bag. The Prism Witch glared at the Geo Master, who quickly zipped out before anyone could stop him.

"Alastor, you pervert!" Elise snapped before turning to Sara, who relaxed. "Sorry about that Sara."

"Just take what you want out of the crate." The Master Thief replied.

"Even the lemon liquor?" Elise asked as she stared at her friend. "Are you still hung up on that case of citrusphobia?"

"I don't have citrusphobia!" Sara snapped. "I just don't like lemons!"

"I guess it's because of that one prank you feel victim to?" The Prism Witch inquired in a teasing manner.

"What's that all about?" Trent asked, interested in the subject that seemed very new to him.

"Sara took part in a lemon juice drinking contest in order to win a Megiddo Cannon. Unfortunately, she drank so much that she had an electrolyte imbalance to the point that Sara was able to conduct a year supply of electricity as a human battery. You can imagine the people who wanted free energy from her cells." Elise explained.

"Bullshit!" Sara snapped.

"No need for a crass mouth, Sara." Elise replied. "The bright side is that you're the best of the best in what you can do. Be proud and don't be afraid to eat and drink more lemons and other citrus fruits to keep that incredible speed of yours."

Sara could only sigh as Elise continued to resume sorting out the food and necessities.

"How much lemon liquor do we have?" the Master Thief inquired.

IIIII::::IIIIII

"Good to see you again, Emiria." Mick whispered as the black-clad Battle Master and the black-clad Iron Maiden shared an embrace. The dark-green haired woman smiled before both she and Mick heard footsteps approaching.

"Friend of yours, Mick?" Jin inquired as the Sword Master and the Space Knight Monique walked together, the latter hugging his arm. Behind them were Reiko, Fubuki, and Yukimaru.

"This is Emiria, an Iron Maiden of the Valkyrie Class and a close comrade-in-arms. Emiria, meet Jin, Monique, Reiko, Fubuki, and Yukimaru." Mick introduced and greetings were exchanged.

"You must have such good company after we parted, de arimasu." Emiria remarked.

"It's surprising on how one goal can bring people together." Mick replied.

"I would definitely agree with you, Mick." Jin remarked. "But even when goals have been accomplished, attachment and other ties are difficult to break."

"I'd say that the more we hang around with each other, the more bonded we get." Monique added.

"Indeed." Emiria replied. "So what brings you all to the Dark Assembly?"

"It was something that Fubuki and Yukimaru brought up." Monique replied.

"From some of the demons here, we heard about the Dark World's equivalent to the Cave of Ordeals." Yukimaru explained. "If we can get access, we might be able to train ourselves to the level in taking on much stronger enemies."

"In addition, we could retake Veldime by putting an end to the needless chaos that runs there." Fubuki added.

"The bill we need passed today is Open the Dark World's Cave of Ordeals." Monique spoke. "Back in Veldime, there wasn't a Dark World version of it but, after talking to the Prinnies here in the Land of Carnage, I found out that there is one."

"Indeed." The voice of an old man spoke, causing everyone to see a Druid approaching them with a glowing spear.

"Hey! You're that Wandering Blacksmith!" Yukimaru replied on recognition.

"Indeed and thanks to your group's help, I managed to craft the weapon I've spent so much time on." The Wandering Blacksmith replied. "This is the Holy Longinus, the weapon that can kill the gods. To show my gratitude and to ensure that you succeed in passing your proposal, I present the Holy Longinus as a gift. Which one of you wishes to wield the weapon that holds my pride?"

Jin, Monique, Fubuki, Yukimaru, and Reiko looked at Emiria, knowing that those of the Valkyrie class were expert spear fighters. Mick seemed to be in agreement as he nudged the Iron Maiden, who looked at him in surprise.

"If anyone should be given a powerful weapon like that, it should be you." Mick whispered. "No one else is a better spear-fighter."

"You have to be kidding, de arimasu. Surely, someone like you would do better." Emiria replied.

"Probably but my spear skills aren't matched up to yours. I like using my Master Axe now that it's augmented." Mick replied. "Everyone else has their preferred weapon specialty and we don't have a spear fighter in the team."

"I think you're spoiling me, Mick." Emiria remarked. "Since you have a good set of goals with your friends, will you let me join?"

"I don't see why not." Mick replied and Emiria turned and respectfully accepted the Holy Longinus from the Wandering Blacksmith.

Spinning the spear, Emiria smiled as she felt the weapon seemed to fit her ability. "It's perfect, elder one."

"Use it well, young one." The Wandering Blacksmith spoke before walking out the front doors of the Dark Assembly.

"So, who's ready to raise some hell in the Dark Assembly?" Reiko piped up and everyone nodded as they headed towards the Prinny receptionist, who took a large amount of mana credit from Jin, reviewed their proposal bill before allowing them to enter.

"Sis, are you up to the task?" Jin inquired, handing a large bag to Reiko.

Taking the bribery bag, the Master Kunoichi smiled at the Swords Master before taking the lead with everyone behind her.

"Good luck, de gozaru." Yukimaru spoke.

"Knock them dead, de arimasu." Emiria added.

As they passed through the wooden doors, they reaching a hallway that had ivory doors at the end and Reiko calmly walked through first.

The Dark Assembly was filled as senators packed the aisles. Reiko took the podium in the presence of the assembly.

The Master Kunoichi did a mental count of the senators present before assessing the situation. 'We could always rely on the Wood Golem Party and the Mothman Party as always.' She thought to herself before slipping gold bars into hidden slots that would distribute to all of the Wood Golems. The same was done with the angel cakes for the Mothman demons.

'Hmm. The Holy Dragon and Bacial parties won't be able to block the bill.' Reiko thought to herself before dropping the empty bag down.

"Now I present Senator Ares!" a voice called out from the PA.

To Reiko's surprise as well as the surprise of the other senators, the Heavy Knight appeared in the middle of the upper aisle, right in between a good number of the Wood Golems and the Mothman demons.

'Oh no!' Reiko thought. 'Well, if worst comes to worst, I hope we're all ready for this. I can't believe Trent has the chloroform!'

Clearing her throat, the Master Kunoichi began to speak.

"Honorable Senators of the Land of Carnage's Dark Assembly! I come before you with the following proposal: Open the Cave of Ordeals within the Dark World!" Reiko announced.

"All senators! Cast your vote now!" the voice on the PA spoke and the room was filled with "Aye!" and "Nay!" The Wood Golems and Mothman demons present all gave their support while everyone else did the opposite.

As soon as the vote ended, Reiko watched as Senator Ares punched several of the Wood Golems and Mothman demons out before shouting "Nay!", signaling that the proposal failed 350 favored to 970 opposed in votes.

Taking a deep breath, Reiko turned to look at her brother and the Sword Master nodded, understanding the glance for a call to arms. Monique and the others drew their weapons and all hell broke loose in the Dark Assembly a split second later.

IIIIIIII:::::IIIIIII

Onboard the Gargantua, Tink sighed as he looked at the sky while relaxing on the deck. Things had changed beyond his comprehension with the awakening of the real Overlord Zenon. No longer was this child's play anymore. It wasn't even anything from a story where the good triumphed over evil after facing multiple challenges that tested his or her resolve. Rather, how can he contend with the situation where the hero falls and becomes the very thing he fought against with steel resolve? Death itself wasn't a joking matter as it used to be and survival meant everything now.

ばねは湧き出、川の風その深海である  
私を保護しなさい  
神秘的な翼の空気を通って飛行その暗い空である  
私を導きなさい

While Overlord Zenon continued her fight against the endless numbers of Overlords, Dark Sovereigns, and demons, Adell did what he could to bear with the pain that still ached him. The darkness of Rozalin's true self had left him alone and the young demon began to see visions of things he had neither physically seen before nor experienced from any memory that composed his life history.

夜明けは自由に雨が降る  
私の頬をぬらす  
私は私を穏やかに握ってほしい  
子供のように

Adell saw Holt Village as nothing more than a ghost town. A large gravestone with the names of his siblings and himself stood near his home along with multiple bowl shaped candles, each one having a name carved onto the body. There was no doubt that each one had the names of his allies who tried to fight the real Zenon that had possessed him.

He then saw Taro, his parents, the Clerical Saint Catalina, and the Freischutz Irene laugh at an orange Prinny that sounded exactly like Hanako at the edge of a large camping town that he had never seen before. It seemed like a happy reunion of sorts, one that he wished he could be a part of.

'An impossible wish…' he thought bitterly to himself. 'Can I ever ask for forgiveness?'

The scene changed to see Elise and Trent moving crates with their magic while Sara was making lemonade. He also saw Alastor reading a book and his face turning redder as he flipped to another page.

あなたの熟視は私に燃える  
すべてのあなたの中心および精神のあなたの美しい

夢を追跡する力を有する  
曇りがない時間に私を連れて行きなさい

He then saw Reiko taking out the Baciel Party with Jin and Monique while Yukimaru, Fubuki, Mick, and an unknown woman of the valkyrie class handled the remaining opposition in the Dark Assembly they were in, no doubtingly having to force a proposal to pass for approval without any hinderance.

神秘的な翼の空気を通って飛行その暗い空である  
私を導きなさい

アーメン

Despite being a prisoner within his own being while Zenon laid to waste the enemies that attacked on a field of blood, Adell could only find solace in the fact that his family, friends, and allies were safe. It was a blessing to him that Taro and Hanako were alive, though the former was back in his original form while the latter was stuck as a Prinny for the time being.

But despite the predicament that he was in and despite all the pain he had endured, Adell still held on to that last bit of hope that hadn't escaped him. He may not be able to do anything at the moment but Adell felt that he had to see this through to the bitter end no matter the cost.

'Everyone.' He thought to himself as he felt his vision weigh heavily, a sign that Zenon was about to throw him into her hell once more.

'It's all up to you now. Godspeed.' Adell prayed mentally for his surviving comrades before screaming in agony as the Goddess of Overlords sought to break her captive once more.

IIIIII::::IIIIII

The kanji are official lyrics from "Innocent Days" by Kuroishi Hitomi, though she sings the song in a nonsensical language. I listened to it while writing the last section and just felt that I had to include it in.


	5. On the Fields of Battle

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2.

IIIIIII:::::IIIIIIIII

When we all got together, everyone knew of the kinds of enemies that we would face in the Land of Carnage. The Prinny Gate-Keeper told us to be wary of the enemies we would face for they pale to the ones that roam the Cave of Ordeals and the Dark World.

_A few days ago, everyone agreed to stick together and face our foes as a whole. Once we got strong enough, we would then venture into the Cave of Ordeals, then the Dark world with its version of the Cave of Ordeals, and the Item World before returning to Veldime._

_Well, onwards we go into the fields of battle once more._

_Reiko_

IIIIIII:::::IIIIIIII

The morning air and the light of the bright sun greeted them as Jin, Monique, Mick, Emiria, and the others walked forth into the lands beyond the Prinny encampment. Before them, green grass and rocky terrain lay ahead in a manner that would've made a good spot to have a picnic. The silence of the land seemed like the only form of protection for the moment as everyone ventured forth into the frontier of unfamiliar land and the elements that roamed there.

Minutes passed and the serene calmness ended as Catalina, Monique, Elise, and Reiko were the first to sense the incoming storm above the horizon of the land that they stopped.

"What is it, Monique?" Jin asked.

"Something is approaching us from afar." The Space Knight replied before she turned to Sara, who comprehended the implied message from Monqiue's gaze.

The Master Thief sprinted onto the top of a nearby hill with Irene and Taro in tow before pulling out her binoculars. Huge clouds of dust were kicking up from the horizon and Sara's eyes widened as she clearly saw the cause to it.

"Incoming enemies! Everyone, I see ten thousand strong at least!" Sara called out. The news registered with everyone and Jin brought the Muramasa out to establish some order in the face of potential panic.

"Everyone! We need to stay together and fight as one!" the Sword Master spoke. "All of you possessing long-range weapons, use the strongest attacks you have for mass damage! The rest will hold the front line."

"Understood." Alastor, Fubuki, and Emiria replied.

The roaring bellows of charging Orcs, Hellhounds, Ghosts, and Prinnies echoed as tens of thousands of them ran towards at the group from the vast plains. The distance between the two forces, having been at twenty miles when both sides achieved visibility of each other, slowly diminished.

Jin held the Muramasa high over his head before executing the Dimensional Slash with one sideway swipe, unleashing hell as a blade of energy decimated the approaching demons.

Mick followed suit as he swung the Durandal, unleashing a downward blade of energy that came from the Dimensional Slash.

Monique pressed both of her hands together onto her Divine Staff, channeling and focusing her magic into her weapon. Fire and star energies resonated together as the Space Knight unleashed a devastating wave of power at the demon hordes.

Trent raised his Yggdrasil Stick to cross with Elise's Universal Staff and Alastor's Sage's Staff before executing a combined attack of ice, wind, and star magic that soared as a single huge spear through the air.

Catalina with her Seraphic Bow, Irene with her Artemis, Yukimaru with her Luminous Bow, and Emiria with her Hunter Bow aimed high before all four ladies unleashed the cold icy storm of a combined Omega Comet.

Sara aimed both of her Handguns and Hawkeye brought his Megiddo Cannon before both fired an Inferno blast.

The combined attacks ravaged through the ranks of Orcs, Hellhounds, Ghosts, and Prinnies, laying waste to the vast numbers of attacking demons that severely outnumbered the newcomers to the Land of Carnage. The combined assault of devastating power ravaged and shook the grassy plains as smoke and dust kicked up into the air.

Despite the initial assault bringing in severe casualties in the thousands, the demons were quick to replenish their fallen numbers as the Orcs, Hellhounds, Prinnies, and Ghosts appeared from the clouds.

"That didn't slow them down!" Jin spoke.

"I can't believe it!" Monique replied in shock, putting her Divine Staff away to draw out her Sunrise Sword, the crimson energy blade springing to life. "Everyone! Get ready!"

"Here they come!" Mick called out, putting the Durandal away to use his Master Axe.

"Archers and gunners, lay down some cover fire!" Catalina spoke before drawing another arrow. Irene, Emiria, and Yukimaru followed her lead and all four unleashed four fiery arrows of the Zielregen into the air. Sara and Hawkeye added to the second volley with a combined Inferno blast while Alastor, Elise, and Trent unleashed hell as three fiery dragons erupted from their staves to spew the full fury of the Terra Fire magic. The grassy fields filled with enemies were reduced to smoking ash and scorched earth in the conflagration of the second volley that ravaged and swept through the ranks of the demons with an inferno of flaming arrows and unquenchable flames.

Despite losing a few thousand more, the incoming horde continued to approach them without pause and the long-range attackers found themselves recuperating their energy and stamina.

Alastor, Elise, Trent, Sara, Hawkeye, Irene, and Catalina had expended too much energy to take so many of the incoming demons down that they collapsed onto their knees in exhaustion.

"Jin, they'll need some time to recuperate." Fubuki called out.

"Then we'll have to buy that amount of time." Jin replied before looking at Monique, who nodded while channeling her star magic into the Sunrise Sword.

"Everyone else is still ready." Monique replied before looking at Taro. "Help the others in the recovery process and look after them."

"I will." Taro replied.

"Monique, Emiria, Mick, Fubuki, Yukimaru, and Reiko. It's our turn to unleash hell." The Sword Master called out.

Emiria and Yukimaru, managing to shake off their fatigue, stashed the Hunter and Luminous Bows away before drawing the Holy Longinus and the Kunoichi Blade.

"All swords, use Dimensional Slash while we still have the chance!" Monique called out before raising her Sunrise Sword in the air. Jin, Reiko, and Yukimaru followed the Space Knight's lead and the four jumped into the air before combining their attacks into one, The huge eerie green blade descended from the sky, wiping out more demons of the approaching horde

Jin, Monique, Mick, Emiria, Fubuki, Reiko, and Yukimaru charged straight into approaching demons. Swords sliced through the enemies as Jin, Monique, Yukimaru, and Reiko executed their Blade Rush skills to the deadliest effect. Emiria slaughtered a great number as she connected her Asteroid Drop skills in a series. Both Fubuki and Mick jumped from spot to spot, utilizing combinations that strung the Calamity Drive, Gravitron Flare, and Colossal Fissure skills together.

As they fought and left dead bodies in the wake of their direct assault, the long-range combatants, having recovered in time, joined the assault to do more than just picking out their targets en masse. Irene ran and jumped off of Taro's shoulders, boosting herself into the air before firing three arrows, each one suddenly turning into a barrage of arrows that decimated the demons further up. Catalina utilized her Zielregen skill repeatedly, incinerating dozens of demons with volley after volley. Hawkeye and Sara both fired the familiar fiery beams of the Totenkreuz. Trent, Elise, and Alastor continued to rain fire, wind, ice, and star magic from afar, being the flanking guards that contributed to the group's long-range attacks.

The Orcs, Ghosts, and Prinnies, being at the farthest end of the demon hordes and have yet to engage in close quarter fighting, answered the incoming threats with the falling Orc God Idols, crashing furniture of Poltergeist, and long-range Prinny bombs. Yet, frustration mounted as their enemies proved more unpredictable by either evading the attacks, which decimated the other demons that were fighting at close-range, or by intercepting them with their own long range attacks, notably from the shooters themselves.

Though outnumbered, the newcomers did more than made up for the disadvantages with the sheer tenacity of their combat skills and magic. Nonetheless, the battle continued with no determined winner in sight.

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"So these heathens managed to inflict quite a toll while on the offense." A sinister voice spoke as its owner, a massive black Malchidael wearing gold armor, stood on the top of the ridge overseeing the battle occur a safe distance away from him. Unlike others in the Baciel class, his left arm cannon had four large scimitar blades that were arranged to give a wicked claw-like appearance.

Around him, the group of twenty Hell Dragons and other Malchidaels, his personal guard, awaited for his orders. At the same time, they continued to keep an eye on the young and short black-haired girl in white and white. At the moment, she was barely able to stay awake due to the exhaustion that came from nearly drowning. After getting sucked into the unknown portal in the Dallos River, Asagi had found herself in a strange world and, five minutes later, as a prisoner to a warlord of sorts that led a huge army across the uninhabited fields in the Land of Carnage.

"So Asagi." The Malchidael leader spoke. "Today's a very lucky day for you. Not only will you be living a while longer before we toss you into the Coliseum but you might be making new friends today. They certainly will provide some amusing sport, perhaps even better than those that you helped in escaping."

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Black blood stained the scorched soils of the ground as Orcs, Hellhounds, and Ghosts continued to attack in wave after wave. It was a terrible mistake on their part to add Prinnies to their ranks as one of their enemies, an Iron Maiden of the Valkyrie class, had captured and drop-kicked a few of them into the heavier concentrations where the penguin-demons were, setting off a wild chain reaction that had all Prinnies go out with a bang that thinned the numbers out. Despite that, the Hellhounds, Orcs, and Ghosts did more than make up for the losses.

Swinging and thrusting the Qi-imbued blade of the Muramasa, Jin struck his foes down like a scythe going through wheat. Dodging the occasional club of the Orc, the blade-like horn of the Hellhound, and the whip-like head appendage of the Ghost, the Sword Master fought like a madman with all the energy and skill that brought forth the harmonic symphony of a combative soul that knew when to strike true with great precision in order to eradicate such deadly threats. Unlike Monique, Mick, and Emiria, Jin was the only front line combatant without protective armor. The attire he wore, a hybrid of the Black Outfit and Bushido Suit, hasn't taken any damage yet due to his nimble agility and graceful form to instinctively evade, a trait he picked up from the late Shadow Master Saito. His Traveler's Mantle, however, wasn't so fortunate, despite being relatively intact, as it endured a few tears in the fabric. There were some close calls and Jin had avoided blows that would've taken him out of the battle. Nonetheless, the Sword Master continued to fight without pause and his kill tally continued to pile up. Amid gesturing the demons before him to attack, Jin could only wonder on how Monique was doing.

Not far away, Monique proved to be a more powerful force in battle than her love interest as she swung her Sunrise Sword in vicious arcs. The crimson energy blade was larger than normal, no doubtingly enhanced and fueled by her fire and star magic. Despite not being at the same level in sword skills as Jin, the Space Knight more than made up for it with determination and sheer force, greatly augmented by her magic that enhanced her strikes to the most damaging effects possible. Her modified armor, consisting of the Breastplate and various augmentations from salvaged Infernal Armors, served well in providing her great protection while not hindering the Space Knight down in speed and mobility whatsoever. The Traveler's Mantle she wore was, like her armor, still intact and without a scratch for anything that came within eight feet of the Space Knight was instantly incinerated. Unlike Jin, Monique didn't have to evade her enemies, all of whom gave her wide berth and are hesitant to attack the Space Knight as she calmly walked forward like a beautiful yet vengeful goddess that brought death to all that confronted her. Monique had no worries whatsoever with the exception of Jin that is.

Mick and Emiria proved to be more than just a formidable pair as they fought alongside each other together. The Battle Master plowed through the larger concentration of Orcs and Hellhounds, wielding the Durandal and the Master Axe that he combined together at their handle ends into a hybrid weapon. The Dragon Mail he wore took some damage that came from the flying rocks that came from the Orcs using their Orc God skills and Mick sustained some injuries from the Hellhounds' Death Fang and Wild Vice assaults. If strength and endurance had any definitions, Mick defined them well as he spearheaded his way through the demons despite the apparent injuries. Behind him, the Iron Maiden enjoyed using the Holy Longinus for the first time in battle, twirling it like a baton around her as she left dead Orcs and broken Ghosts behind her. Knowing the futility in wearing the standard attire that the other Valkyries wore when fighting so many enemies, Emiria wore a modified Chain Mail with a Front Plate to protect her vitals. Neither her speed nor her movements were hindered as she decimated the demons around her without pause. With Mick spearheading a charge, Emiria picked up the rear and eradicated any stragglers that her friend missed.

The maelstrom that came from the Midare Fubuki techniques literally left Orcs, Hellhounds, and Ghosts in the ice as Yukimaru and Fubuki utilized one of the Snow Clan's most lethal skills. Reiko had yet to learn their skills but the Master Kunoichi took a more subtle approach in doing as much damage that the Snow Clan siblings were meting out. The trio weren't taking the role as front-line combatants but with so many demons attacking and the vulnerability of their long-range shooting and magic group, they really didn't have much option. Trent, Alastor, and Elise continued to work their magic, taking out foes from the distance while Taro took out anyone that got too close. Catalina, Irene, Sara, and Hawkeye continued to blast their targets from afar without much worry. Accuracy was important to the mages and the shooters when it came to countering any idols of the Orc God that fell from the sky or the flying furniture that the Ghosts summoned.

Minutes passed before the scrimmage of conflict was littered with piles of the dead and the demons stopped their charge. Jin, Monique, Mick, Emiria, Fubuki, Reiko, and Yukimaru were still standing but all of them felt the battle take a toll on their stamina and endurance.

"They stopped but why?" Mick spoke, watching as the Orcs, Hellhounds, and Ghosts stood in position before laughter from an unknown being sliced through the air.

"You've come this far only to meet the end of the line my hands!" the voice spoke and Jin caught sight of a black Malchidael with gold armor appear on the hill some distance away. "Seeing on how you've wiped out over half of my army, I grow impatient for battle and you will all know the name of Kuro, the one who made you all taste defeat!"

"Perhaps but you'll be the one swallowing defeat instead!" Jin replied as he held the Muramasa at ready before gesturing at Kuro. "Bring it if you dare!"

The Malchidael snarled before jumping into the air with his left cannon aimed at the Sword Master. But instead of firing, Kuro brought the scimitar blades attached to his cannon down in a jab on Jin, who evaded the first strike before blocking the swing that followed.

The moment that the leaders of both opposing forces engaged in combat, the battle resumed but this time, everyone participated in a fierce melee. The appearance of the Hell Dragons and other Malchidaels brought a new intensity to the fight that Trent, Alastor, Elise, Sara, Hawkeye, Catalina, Irene, and Taro jumped in to bring the fight to the enemy and to provide support for Monique, Mick, Emiria, Fubuki, and Reiko.

From her cage, Asagi watched the battle with worry after having recognized the newcomers as the same people that traveled with Adell and Rozalin. The duel between Kuro and Jin was what drew her attention for the battle between the leaders would be the determinant on who will gain the advantage.

If there was one thing good about her predicament it would be that Adell's friends managed to find her all the way out here first rather than Kurtis, Axel, and the others. When she was held as a prisoner at the Coliseum, she met Kurtis, Axel, Usagi, Pleinair, and a few others, all of whom were picked up by marauders in the Land of Carnage and sold to the Coliseum. Breaking out of the prisons wasn't very difficult thanks to Kurtis but no thanks to Axel, it didn't go as planned and Asagi was forced to stay behind to distract the prison ward in order for the others to escape. Her mind, once filled with thoughts on how she was going to murder the Dark Hero, was more intent in watching what was about to transpire.

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Read and review.


	6. The Scream Heard Around The World

Note: I don't own Disgaea.

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"I'm the Dark Hero and bringing misfortune is what I'm supposed to do!" Axel explained.

"Only in times that are peaceful and quiet!" Kurtis replied sharply before firing a nuclear laser at Axel, who evaded the blast. "By acting like a complete jackass and lacking common sense during the escape, Asagi had been recaptured after drawing them off! From now on, you're on your own because no one here except for your Director can stand you!"

With that, the 37th Defender of Earth stalked off. Pleinair, Sammy, and Usagi silently tagged behind the green Prinny as they seemed to share Kurtis's views regarding the issue.

"I guess I really done it, eh?" Axel asked.

"Axel, the Dark Hero is supposed to be despised!" the Director replied. "They simply can't grasp the notion of having entertainment at another's expense!"

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The crimson blade of the Muramasa sliced through the air with lightning speed as Jin continued his duel against Kuro. The Sword Master and the Malchidael were unevenly matched as the latter's power and size dwarfed his opponent, who answered with his unparalleled skills with the blade and the speed from his Shukuchi art. Jin was everywhere across the field amid his movements of engaging Kuro, who resorted to shooting down his foe without success as he only managed to hit only the Sword Master's after-images. Nonetheless, the fact that Jin couldn't replace them while in evasion allowed Kuro to narrow his sights before unleashing his Extinction Beam technique. Jin managed to deflect a majority of the incoming blasts with the Muramasa while barely dodging the rest. Focusing his Qi into the weapon in his hands, the Sword Master spun in a circle before charging at Malchidael, who fired energy blasts at his foe.

Asagi watched the duel between Kuro and Jin, neither one being able to gain the advantage against each other. Kuro's army, despite outnumbering their foes by a very wide margin, had been mostly laid to waste due to the rather wild one-sided show of force from what was left of Adell's group of allies and friends, most of them exhausted from overexerting themselves in their collective assault. Those that still had some fuel left refrained from going after the retreating survivors in Kuro's army, preferring to keep their attention locked on the Malchidael's personal guard detail that accompanied him earlier and are now keeping Asagi in captivity.

'Reiko, Yukimaru, Fubuki. I hope your rescue plan works with those trigger-happy saps distracted by their leader's duel.' Mick thought to himself, taking a breather as he sat on the ground to watch the fight before him.

With many of the group recuperating while others taking out the survivors of Kuro's forces, Monique was the only one standing on her two feet. Despite the strain on her stamina, the Space Knight wasn't completely worn out from the fight. She watched the movements of her love interest, analyzing and guessing his tactical mindset to form a good picture of his fight. The style, a derivation of the Mujushin Kenjutsu discipline along with a few other skills added, wasn't complicated for her to understand but Monique knew full well that her own practical application wouldn't be at the level that Jin's skills were.

Kuro swiped in a flurry of blows at Jin, who evaded and blocked the incoming strikes before jumping back to execute a Blade Rush. But the Malchidael sidestepped at the last second before swatted the Sword Master in the back of the head. Jin rolled away to evade the incoming stomp before closing his eyes to focus his Qi into a condition for his next move. As Kuro raised his arm to smash the Sword Master into the ground, Jin brought the Muramasa in an upward slash, slicing the Malchidael's cannon arm off before spinning to his feet and slamming the blade into his foe's gut. Cutting upward, the Muramasa sliced through flesh, bone, and sinew before Jin freed the blade and delivered a horizontal slash to Kuro's midsection. The Malchidael exploded into embers as his life ended like a thread being snipped by shears.

The realization that he killed his foe in battle hit home and Jin felt the battle adrenaline in himself wear off that he collapsed onto his knees. The rumbling of the earth and the sensing of the killing instinct warned him of the imminent danger and Jin looked to see remnants of Kuro's personal guard charge down the hill. The Hell Dragons were sending black fire and the Malchidaels were firing energy blasts at him and the others. Knowing that he couldn't escape the incoming barrage, the Sword Master narrowed his eyes before a blinding flash of light erupted. A familiar blond-haired Space Knight was standing right next to him and Jin noticed that Monique had created a large magical shield that seemed to intercept and absorb the incoming barrage.

Looking at the Space Knight, the Sword Master noticed that she was chanting rapidly and non-stop in an archaic language. It was then that the energy shield began to expand before completely surrounding and enclosing Kuro's personal guard in a bubble. Monique slowly raised her arm high and, with the enemies in the air, she snapped her fingers. The energy bubble exploded, vaporizing all of its occupants in an instant.

"Thanks, Monique." Jin whispered as he noticed Reiko, Yukimaru, and Fubuki had freed Asagi and are on the way back.

The Space Knight turned towards the Sword Master before helping him to his feet. "Jin, dear. Don't exert yourself too much. Take it easy for now."

"These enemies are beyond what we had fought." Jin replied, sensing the Space Knight use her healing magic on him.

Mick stood to his feet as the pair approached. "Excellent fight, Jin."

"Thanks, Mick." Jin replied. "There's a town just over those hills. We should try and reach it before we get caught in a bad condition."

"Understood. I'll pass word to the others." Mick replied. "I wonder as what is going on in Veldime right now."

"It can't be any worse what we have to face." Monique spoke. "Still…"

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Veldime…

Zenon looked around the blood-soaked fields, littered with the broken weapons and mutilated bodies of her enemies. She had destroyed countless numbers of her foes while drawing upon her host, defiling him in the worst ways into complete submission. The first countless wave of demons and challengers had been destroyed but more were on the way. Burning away a part of the field, Zenon collected some of the blood that belonged to some of the Lilith-rank succubi, Space Knights, and a Clerical Saint before mixing them together. The body of the Clerical Saint, still retaining a bit of warmth and not yet dead, was placed in the center of the burned field. She then gathered specific bones from the Hell Dragons along with a discarded Dark Rosary, Exodus, Dark Orb, and Chaos Orb.

"All components for one of the blackest of all rituals." Zenon spoke as she used some of the blood to draw the pentagram along with multiple symbols around the broken body of the Clerical Saint. After stabbing specific areas of the body with the bones of the Hell Dragon, Zenon placed the two emblems onto the dead woman's neck and the two orbs into her hands before stepping back.

As Zenon begin to chant several incantations, the pentagram began to resonate and an eerie purple glow erupted along with black flames that engulfed the body in the center, incinerating it. Zenon opened her host's mouth before leaving Adell's body behind and entering the center of the pentagram. Lightning and flames swarmed around the pentagram and from the center of the ritual, a well-endowed woman with blond hair, pale skin, and black eyes emerged without any clothing, though that was remedied with the discarded cloaks that hung off the protruding handle ends of swords sticking from the ground.

And what of Adell's body? The red-haired youth began to regain consciousness before catching sight of the cloaked woman before him. Adell had managed to endure the stress of hell that kept him completely worn out before catching sight of the woman before him. Her aura radiated with dark energy and there was no mistaking on how powerful she is.

Rozalin or Zenon, Adell knew that he was at a severe disadvantage but nonetheless tried to get to his feet. He needed to withdraw, anything to get away from the Goddess of Overlords, who extended her hand out. Black chains shot out of her fingertips and wrapped around Adell's body, restraining him on the spot. Zenon then revived one of the dead Shadow Masters and, controlling it like a puppet, ordered the revenant to open both of Adell's eyes.

"Just kill me already!" Adell shouted.

"I think not." Zenon replied as she fixed her gaze on the restrained youth before her. "You belong to me and I shall hold sway over your existence."

Sensing the malicious influence coming out of the goddess's black eyes with its red pupils and entering into his own eyes, Adell tried to break eye contact without success.

"Forget everything about being human. Forget the life you lived." Zenon spoke.

"STOP! You'll take everything from me?!" Adell yelled, shaking his head in denial as the animated Shadow Master forced his eyes to open wider.

"My parents?!" Adell clenched his jaws as flashes of the married couple that his heart called his mother and father ran through his mind before shattering into pieces.

"Even Taro and Hanako?!" Adell screamed desperately, fighting tears as the images of his siblings ran through his mind before shattering into pieces.

"I, Zenon the Goddess of All Overlords, shall engrave your new false memories!" the goddess spoke triumphantly.

Adell's scream continued, echoing all over Veldime, even as he fell into darkness and the animated Shadow Master fell dead once again.

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Somewhere in the Land of Carnage…

Catalina gasped the moment she heard a scream within her mind before sensing it to have come from not the world she and the others were in but from Veldime.

"Catalina, what is it?" Irene asked as she walked alongside the Clerical Saint.

"I sense a great pain coming from within Veldime." Catalina replied in a whisper. "It felt like it came from Adell but I'm not sure."

"Are you certain?" Irene asked.

"It's just strange." Catalina replied. "Even when he was possessed, I could still feel his mind and soul remain the same. But now, something has changed and I don't know what it is."

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Prinny Encampment…

"So you all were able to escape but ditched Axel and his Director?" Adell's Mom inquired as she served Kurtis, Pleinair, Sammy, and Usagi some tea under the tent canopy.

"Because of him, Asagi had been captured and no one wants bad luck due to the Dark Hero being a liability to our freedom." Kurtis replied.

"Even when situations are serious…" Adell's Dad muttered. "Axel has lost touch with reality."

Adell's Mom was about to speak when she sensed the scream in her mind before almost collapsing forward onto the table in front of her.

"Honey, what happened?!" Adell's Dad asked frantically as he ran to support his wife.

"I…I don't… know." Adell's Mom replied softly. "Think it was just fatigue."

Seeing that there was nothing wrong, Adell's Dad nodded before heading to get himself something to drink. Adell's Mom hid her face as tears ran in streams from her eyes at what she had just felt in her mind before clutching her heart.

"Adell…" she whimpered before retiring into her room, not wanting anyone to see her weep.

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Veldime…

"Greater numbers of enemies as numerous as the sands of the desert shall come." Zenon spoke before turning to face the young man in red-hair and black eyes with amethyst pupils that were similar to hers. "The only thing that matters now is to destroy them all and you shall follow me, Adell."

"As you wish, milady." Adell replied in a monotone as a black aura engulfed them both.

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Read and review. Also, give me suggestions on names for Adell's adoptive parents.


	7. Momentary Reprieve

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2.

I've been hanging around too often in the anime sections so I apologize for neglecting this.

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Setting camp wasn't difficult, considering that it was a normal procedure to the remnants of Adell's group. Back when they were in Veldime, they would camp out for days while finishing campaigns in different regions of the world that would take them closer to Zenon.

The trees provided adequate cover as the group set their tents in simple construction as they would only stay there for the night. They were close to a river so access to water wasn't a problem. Once that was done, the women and girls headed out to take a bath south of the camp and in a very forested area several kilometers down the river while the men headed north to gather water, firewood, and food from the various plants they could harvest and from the animals that they could hunt. Only Trent and Alastor remained behind to guard the campsite.

North of the campsite, the trees echoed with the sounds of metal slicing through wood as Mick and Fubuki had their weapons drawn, slicing some large branches off the ogre-sized trees with the Master Axe and Niflheim. Piling the newly cut logs, both of them headed back to camp.

Not far away, Taro was picking berries from nearby bushes, gathering seven basketfuls before stacking them on top of each other and heading back.

Near the outskirts of the forest that was west of the campsite, Hawkeye aimed his Megiddo Cannon, which was on a very low power setting, before firing several shots into a herd of deer that were grazing on the field. His select targets fell dead amid getting shot in the head.

Loading eight large jugs of freshwater from the northern part of the river onto a largely thick column of wood with four hanging off each end, Jin hoisted the load up onto his shoulders before walking back to camp.

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Relaxing in the water, Emiria, Asagi, Catalina, Monique, Yukimaru, Reiko, Sara, Elise, and Irene bathed in the southern parts of the river. The bushes and trees provided privacy but Catalina and Monique cast several wards to deter males from finding them along with heating charms on the river water to make it hot like a hot spring.

"So that bloke Axel is actually in the Land of Carnage?" Reiko asked with annoyance.

"Yes and it was his fault that I caught captured while helping Kurtis and the others to escape." Asagi replied bitterly. "But thanks to you all, I'll at least have the chance to castrate the Dark Hero alive if I see him again."

Emiria smirked at Asagi before the Iron Maiden began speaking. "That battle against his horde was rather fun but I've never had to exert myself that much before."

"In all battles I've been in leading to the Zenon imposter, I have to agree with you that this world is a completely new playing field." Catalina replied. Monique, Elise, Yukimaru, Sara, Elise, and Irene nodded in agreement.

"But stronger enemies mean becoming stronger ourselves." Elise piped up.

"Not to mention that the experience in battling them will help once we head back to Veldime." Sara added.

"Even if we need to fight more battles just to fine tune our skills." Irene added.

Monique raised an eyebrow on how lively the little girls she secretly referred to as the "loli group" were in the conversation, despite being in the presence of the adult women.

"Well, I won't deny those facts but I must admit that we all have to choose our fights carefully as individuals." the Space Knight spoke.

"I still think that Jin was reckless to attack Kuro's horde head-on like that." Catalina replied.

Monique narrowed her eyes at the Clerical Saint, who continued. "We got lucky today but it's a bit nerve-racking to have to fight that many."

"Well, they were charging at us and we didn't have a chance to avoid them, de gozaru." Yukimaru replied.

"True." Catalina replied. "Makes me nervous on what tomorrow has to bring."

"Well, we could always discuss tactics with the others and see what their input if it puts your mind at ease." Monique suggested.

"That's sounds real good." Catalina replied

"But I know something even better." Monique spoke mischievously as she eyed the Clerical Saint's bosom. "Nice rack."

Catalina traced the busty Space Knight's gaze to see that she was looking at her chest.

"You're developing well and you have such balance such that I'm sure you'll set a good example." Monique continued while thinking to herself. 'Still, I doubt your bust size will overtake mine.'

It so happened that Elise, Sara, and Irene stared at Catalina's bosom that she quickly covered her chest with her arms and turned away.

"W-what are you talking about, you pervert?!" the Clerical Saint stuttered as her face flushed red while Monique smirked at her.

"Anyways, I think we need to get a map of the whole Land of Carnage." Irene piped up, catching everyone's attention. "Back at the Prinny Camp, Mick said none of them had a map of the regions that we're currently in."

"Yeah, that is a problem, de gozaru." Yukimaru replied.

"We can discuss this later at the camp." Reiko spoke. "When do we do our laundry?"

"A few more minutes." Emiria replied. "Elise, Catalina, and Monique, I take it you three know how to cast the flames of purification?"

"We can do so." Catalina replied.

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All of the females in the group, after finished taking a bath in the heated river and washing their clothes, returned to the campsite to find stacks of firewood, jugs of fresh water, freshly killed deer that were stripped of their flesh and entrails, and baskets full of clean berries.

"Wow, you guys must have been tasked with such heavy work to get all this stuff." Emiria remarked.

"Hunting and gathering." Mick replied, having assisted Jin in cutting up the deer meat. "All of us need to clean up, though."

"Literally." Catalina remarked. "We'll have all this cleaned and cooked by the time you all return."

Leaving the women and girls to prepare dinner, all the men and boys headed downstream where Mick, Jin, and Fubuki smelled the feminine scents lingering strongly such that they moved several meters upstream to avoid washing up in an area that had already been used by the women but not too far such that further upstream meant spoiling the fresher water.

After Trent and Alastor quickly conjured brick walls and false trees to prevent unwanted interruption, all the males took their time to wash themselves up thoroughly as their stomachs were growling with hunger. Ten minutes later, Trent and Alastor were the first to finish before Jin, Mick, Fubuki, Taro, and Hawkeye came out of the water. All seven, wearing towels around their persons, headed a few feet upstream to wash their clothes.

Trent and Alastor, having taken their staves with them, cast purification flames on their clothing before proceeding to the same to the clothing of their fellow comrade-in-arms.

Once the men and boys were finished with putting their hygiene back to high standards respectively and getting dressed back into their attire, they proceeded silently back to the camp to find the women and girls having prepared everything for the group to eat. The deer was cooked and the berries were cleaned before both were divided equally.

As everyone sat down and ate, Reiko brought up the topic about the need for a map of the whole Land of Carnage.

"The Treasure Maps we stole from the pirates only gave us a limited overview on some of the lands outside of the Prinny Camp." The kunoichi spoke. "We need something that will show us the entire world itself."

"With the kind of enemies were facing, it will be somewhat difficult to look for a town that has a good cartographer." Mick spoke.

"The nearest town is seven kilometers due north and the Prinnies say that it is called the Fortress of Trysting." Emiria spoke. "We could stay there for a week or two, make it somewhat of a base that we can use to return to while strengthen ourselves until we need to move on."

"Looks like it will be a good opportunity for you to become more powerful, Asagi." Catalina added.

"I see." Asagi replied.

"The route to Trysting is a hazardous one, considering that there are reports of marauders roaming about, harassing travelers." Fubuki spoke. "They're incredibly strong but power alone isn't the only thing that can win battles."

"There is also the political situation in Trysting as much of the populace are living under the iron rule of a corrupt magistrate." Hawkeye added. "If we head there, be prepared because the magistrate's cronies are of the bullying type, abusing their power and ordering residents to pay tributes just so that they can go on without being harassed."

"Surely, those guys can't be very strong as you seem to imply." Jin remarked.

"They probably could almost match us. We could beat them but they probably won't make it easy for us." Hawkeye replied. "After that battle against Kuro and his horde, it's hard to say on how much power we've gained from those fights. Some of you are professionals in your specialties and can coordinate well together. Some of you work well while going solo. Some of us are either getting there or are just not at that caliber for heavy combat."

"Don't feel that way." Catalina spoke. "You still can contribute in other ways that the strong ones are unable to. Besides, strength comes in numbers and political power grows from the barrel of a gun."

"We can probably worry about the situation in Trysting once we get there." Alastor spoke. "The main concern would be getting there while avoiding those marauders."

"We travel by night. It's a lot easier to move in the darkness, de gozaru." Yukimaru suggested.

"Some of us could easily get lost." Sara spoke. "We could bait the marauders to come out of their hiding spots and then engage."

"Engaging them would put a strain on us before we get to Trysting." Trent countered. "But the baiting idea is a good one. If we can find a wagon and load it with explosives, we could draw those bandits to get close before detonating them."

"Would that be enough to destroy them?" Taro asked.

"Probably not but it could weaken them enough so that they're easy to take out." Irene replied.

"That could actually work but we should also find a way to cut off their retreat." Elise spoke.

"I certainly wouldn't mind doing some cleanup before we reach Trysting." Mick spoke. "But planning this will require some real information so that we can set things up."

An hour later…

Taro, Irene, Catalina, Asagi, Sara, Trent, and Elise slept soundly in their respective futons within their tents while Alastor, Fubuki, Yukimaru, and Reiko sat outside, all four in meditation and keeping watch for the approach of any hostile elements. Jin, Monique, Mick, Emiria, and Hawkeye were still awake around the campfire. Within a number of security wards to prevent eavesdropping, Monique conjured a holographic image of a map that showed the road to Trysting.

"From what the Prinnies back at their camp managed to pass onto us, the reports of previous attacks are centered around these three points." Monique pointed out. "There used to be a river that ran underneath a bridge here but that was later destroyed after it dried up. That's the first point for common ambushes as the grass around the area is very high."

"Some of us could fire a well-placed Totenkrutz or a Zielreigen to level them out." Hawkeye spoke. "Burn the grass and they might suffocate from the heat."

"The grass is resistant to fire due to their unnaturally high water content." Jin spoke.

"Ice and wind magic might suffice before hitting them with a powerful fire attack." Emiria replied.

"I concur." Mick added. "But those bandits could evacuate before our attacks can land. If we cast some strong smokescreens, they won't be able to see us coming at them."

"Alright, that can work." Monique replied. "But casting a smokescreen by magic would delay things so we'll need some real smoke bombs for that."

"Trent, Elise, and Sara can help on that." Emiria spoke.

"Then the second point is this area as the road moves up in elevation." Monique continued. "The higher ground gives the marauders an advantage in being able to pin down a convoy, halting it in its tracks."

"The bomb-rigged wagons can work right there." Jin spoke. "The moment they see it, they'll swarm the convoy like wolves such that we can detonated the explosives be remote."

"But we'll need to have some people on the convoy so that they'll think they'll be robbing it without repercussions." Emiria spoke.

"Too risky and we shouldn't have anyone sacrifice themselves for that task." Monique replied.

"What about using pheromone scents?" Hawkeye suggested. "A good number of the marauders are sensitive to feminine pheromones such that it can lure them close enough to be caught in the blast radius."

Emiria and Monique glared at the gunslinger for a moment before the latter spoke. "As much as I hate to admit it, that might do the trick. Catalina, Emiria, Reiko, and I can brew a good potion before dousing the wagons with it."

Jin and Mick raised their eyebrows but didn't say anything, amid seeing the angry looks coming from their respective girlfriends being directed at Hawkeye.

"Third point is the open field not far from the front gates of Trysting. We're out in the open before reaching our destination." Monique spoke. "Most of the attacks occur from fast movements and the bandit groups that are bold to raid directly while being seen."

"When the Baal pirates attacked us, we peppered them with long-range attacks. Any chance for this to work, though?" Emiria asked.

"You and anyone else using bows and staves should take cover while the others lure them out." Monique replied. "But the moment they get within fifty meters, the group luring them needs to withdraw."

"Due to the vast distance between these hotspots, timing is going to important in not only shattering these bandits but to also prevent any from escaping lest they warn others of our presence." Jin spoke. "Strike fast and hard before they can react."

"Easier said than done, Jin." Mick replied.

"But it's possible no matter the difficulty." Monique spoke.

"You'll need more than just real complex planning to pull each hotspot off." Emiria replied.

"That means playing real cheap with some innovative plays." Hawkeye added.

"Considering the resources we have, it can be done." Jin answered. "I need the list of our equipment inventory along with some blank notebook paper. I have an idea for the first two parts."

With that, the group of one Sword Master, one Space Knight, one Battle Master, one Iron Maiden, and one Gunslinger went to work planning their moves throughout a good portion of the night.

IIIII:::IIIII

Mostly filler for now. Next chapter will be more… eventful. My apologies for the lack of updates.


	8. In Route to Trysting

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2

Well, it's been way too long since I stopped by.

III:::III

The afternoon was fresh and the distance to the Fortress of Trysting wasn't long. But knowing that the Land of Carnage was a chaotic maelstrom, Jin and the group knew better than to tread out into the open unprepared. The late morning had been spent on constructing the wagons and loading them with explosives but the feminine pheromone scents that were planned to be included onto them weren't added yet. Monique and Emiria had discussed the issue early that morning before the idea of concocting a potion with the bodily sweat of a Succubus in full arousing heat would be a much better idea. Finding one had been difficult but Catalina and Reiko managed to succeed in locating a Carmilla, who was on a journey to a small coastal town. How the Clerical Saint and the Master Kunoichi managed to succeed wasn't disclosed although the latter did have a red face and smelled strongly of the Carmilla's bodily scent was indication that it came at an embarrassing price.

"Not a word to anyone!" Reiko snarled, gripping her kunai as she sliced the herbs up while glaring at the other women. The Master Kunoichi had never felt so embarrassed after her dignity was shattered into sub-atomic particles due to what had happened to her earlier. Not even taking a full hour bathing in the river and within purification fire could burn away the memories that would forever scar her for the rest of her life.

"I won't say anything but I can't deny my opinion that you looked so into it with her." Catalina replied while trying to look apologetic as she mixed a few liquid ingredients together.

"Lighten up, Reiko. That Carmilla wanted just three hours with you to fill her personal emptiness. It's really difficult if not almost impossible to acquire the bodily sweat of a sexually active succubus." Monique added slyly while Emiria remained silent, preferring not to speak of the matter. The Space Knight had her work cut out in brewing smaller potion components while the Iron Maiden was stirring the concoction.

Reiko's eyes were murderous as she made up her mind to get back at them in some humiliating way in the future. Thinking back on the mission to reach Trysting, the Master Kunoichi continued to slice the herbs for the potion until she was done.

'_I wonder how Jin and the others are doing.'_ Reiko thought to herself. _'I hope they're safe.'_

III::::III

Suffice to say, Jin was not safe but that didn't mean that he wasn't having fun. The thrill of facing danger in the eye while the adrenaline was running through his blood on the battlefield… the Sword Master was truly at home with the situation.

It had started out with the launching of several bombs that detonated, casting large smokescreens all over the dried riverbed and the grassy thickets that grew along the edges. After the first minute following their detonation, Trent and Elise went to work as both the Prism Skull Mage and the Prism Witch unleashed a combination of ice and wind magic into the smokescreens, which were blown away to reveal a combination of humans from the Archer, Thief, Sinner, Gunner classes. While the wind magic moved the smokescreens away, the ice magic froze the majority of the enemies completely before they were vaporized, courtesy to a well-placed Totenkrutz that came from Hawkeye's Megiddo Cannon and Sara's Etoile, the latter deploying the gun for the first time since she acquired it in the Item World.

With the opening shots cast, Jin and Mick didn't wait as both the Sword Master and the Battle Master charged forth, using their weapons to deflect the incoming shots from the surviving enemies.

Once Jin and Mick reached their destination, the two went on the attack, cutting down their foes as the blades of the Muramasa and the Master Axe cleaved through flesh and bone with lethal precision. Though they were moving swiftly as they dispatched their enemies, both the Sword Master and the Battle Master took some damage from arrows and gunfire that happened to bypass their defenses and graze them at the most unfortunate times. Yet running on adrenaline while not letting their light wounds slow them down, the pair continued their all-out assault. After some time of taking down scores and scores of the opposition, both Jin and Mick were forced back as numerous reinforcements closed in to replenish the numbers that they have taken down.

Seeing the pair in trouble, Hawkeye and Sara took action as they joined in the battle, unleashing the hellish fire of the Totenkrutz upon the numerous targets present. Elise and Trent also provided support as both took time to cast high-power ice and wind magic into clusters of enemy reinforcements that were moving on Jin and Mick.

"They're all over the place!" Jin quipped, cutting down a swath through a horde of Archers and Gunners with the Dimensional Blade skill.

"I guess Irene's estimate was way off!" Mick remarked, slamming his weapon into the ground that a raging fissure crack erupted and launched a barrage of earth and bedrock on several Sinners and Thieves. The Battle Master turned to see more enemies moving in on them, only to be taken down by fire, wind, and ice attacks. He didn't have to turn to know that Elise, Trent, Hawkeye, and Sara were providing some support at long-range yet Mick decided to break from Jin in order to divide the enemy force up.

Ducking the incoming Excalibur blade of a charging Thief, Mick swung his Master Axe low, taking her off her feet before bringing the sharp blade at the handle end into her chest that ended her life. Reeling from the incoming hammer blow to his back, Mick coughed blood as he staggered away before ducking the second blow as the Sinner swung the Heavy Hammer with vicious power. Holding his Master Axe with both hands, the Battle Master dashed over the incoming low strike from his foe before swinging his weapon in a diagonal arc, decapitating his opponent before kicking the headless Sinner aside and continuing to fight the remaining hostiles. The incoming long-range fire forced Mick to jump a good distance away. The Battle Master brought his Master Axe above his head, swinging it in a few circles before slamming the blade into the ground with incredible power as he resorted to using the Choudendou Gantetsuzai skill. The terrain began to shake before large rocks erupted upwards from the ground as though some devastating earthly power was being unleashed from below. The attack decimated scores of enemies while leaving a large stretch of land decimated in the wake of Mick's assault.

Jin delivered a flurry of slashes with both Muramasa swords, deflecting the incoming energy shots from a Gunner wielding an Ion Blaster before closing in and ramming one blade into the man's chest and out of his back. Pulling his sword out before tossing it high into the air, Jin grab the dying Gunner by the throat and tossed him into the incoming arrows that several Archers fired in his direction. Channeling his Neijin's Qi, the Sword Master exhaled before moving the blade of his left-hand sword in a vertical circle and bringing it down, executing a combination of the Moon Slash and the Kachuu Kudaki. A cutting wind escaped from the Muramasa before slamming into the Archers, all of whom collapsed with blood streaming out of every opening on their bodies. A critically wounded Baciel brought its cannon arm to aim at Jin from behind, only to be impaled by the Muramasa that the Sword Master had thrown into the air earlier. Not one to take a break while not letting his injuries get to him, Jin retrieved the other sword from the dead Baciel's head before seeing enemy reinforcements charging at him from a distance.

Connecting both Muramasa swords at the ends of their handles to form a double-bladed weapon, Jin brought it high above his head, spinning it before executing the Choudendou Souenzan skill. A large wave of white energy erupted from the twin Muramasa the moment he brought them down in a slashing arc that sailed towards the incoming enemies before detonating upon contact, blasting so many into the air and into oblivion while tearing across the surface of the earth. The second slashing arc went further in distance, blasting the remaining enemies into dust.

Some time passed before the battle ended and both Jin and Mick looked around the barren field that was littered with dead bodies and broken equipment while flames and smoke rose from different areas around them. It looked as though a hellish storm had been unleashed and ravaged through. Both the Sword Master and Battle Master were exhausted and wounded such that both of them collapsed on the ground, desperately in need of healing magic just as the adrenaline rush ended.

Though they fought at long-range, the repeated use of magic and special skills had left Trent and Elise completely exhausted that they were laying sprawled flat on their backs. Only Sara and Hawkeye were unfazed.

Footsteps drew their attention that Hawkeye looked up to see Monique, Catalina, and Emiria appear. While Catalina and Sara went to work on healing Trent, Elise, and Hawkeye, Monique and Emiria went over to Jin and Mick respectively.

"Oh goodness!" the Space Knight quipped as she immediately ran towards the Sword Master before helping him sit up. "You promised not to over-exert yourself!"

Monique slapped Jin across the face in anger before checking his injuries.

The Sword Master nursed the red handprint on his cheek and cringed fearfully at the Space Knight, who channeled her healing magic into her hands before grabbing his shoulders. A few seconds passed before she began healing him.

"Well, I always come back alive and one piece after every battle. I just didn't expect such powerful enemies." Jin replied. "Sorry to worry you."

"Jin, I worry about you and it's not right when you go out and do stuff like this." Monique spoke softly as she finished healing Jin before cupping the side of his face that she had slapped earlier. "Next time, you're taking me with you in every battle that you get into."

Jin wanted to object but Monique's piercing blue-green eyes paralyzed him and the Space Knight's blond hair slightly levitated as though magic was running through. The Sword Master gulped before reluctantly nodding.

Monique smiled before kissing Jin and helping him to his feet to collect his gear.

Meanwhile, Emiria came up to Mick before helping him sit up from the ground. The Iron Maiden wasn't as steamed at the Battle Master as the Space Knight was to the Sword Master. After all, Mick thrived on fights and a battlefield was like home to him. Given that he was a Battle Master of the Warrior class, taking that away from him was like depriving water away from a fish.

"You alright?" the Iron Maiden asked as she gave him a healing potion.

"I'll make it and thanks." The Battle Master replied as he took the potion and swallowed it before feeling his energy revitalize and his wounds heal magically.

A while later, the group consisting of one Battle Master, an Iron Maiden, a Sword Master, a Space Knight, a Prism Skull Mage, a Prism Witch, a Master Thief, and a Desperado Gunslinging Collector began moving across the ruined battlefield towards their next destination.

IIII:::IIII

Several large wagons moved casually through the woods without anything drawing them along the higher elevation. Their cargo holds contained large treasure chests in green and blue colors, which were enough to draw some of the hidden Sinners, Ninjas, and various other males to investigate as they approached. Unbeknownst to them, a timer within the central interior of each wagon silently went off and the centermost treasure chest opened to release a very strong draft of scents that filled the atmosphere of the region.

Virtually all of the males, whether they were hidden in the trees or close to the wagons, were immobilized by the scents. Surprisingly, several Succubus women that swung the other way were very gleeful and lustfully aroused the moment they smelled the scents before they began joining the others in seeing on what the wagons contained, unaware of the danger hidden in the cargo.

A good distance away, Reiko looked through the telescope before seeing that the wagons had a large amount of people swarming all over them. She then took the remote control and pressed the red button before the largest chain reaction of explosions that she had ever seen erupted, tearing through the whole forest as shattered trees were sent flying everywhere. Even from a safe distance, the shockwaves knocked Reiko flat on her back and sent the telescope flying into a thicket.

For almost a half a minute, the explosions continued before eventually dying down and Reiko got to her feet just as Fubuki and Yukimaru approached, knowing that they needed to check up on whether the death trap worked.

Moving swiftly, the trio arrived at the sight to see so many dead demons and humans on the ground. However, there were some critically wounded individuals that were still alive and had some energy left to fight. But alas, the fact that Reiko, Fubuki, and Yukimaru were fresh and in one hundred percent condition while their would-be opponents weren't was the deciding factor as the trio mercilessly dispatched the threats that the survivors posed.

"Let's meet up with the others. The third and last trek will be the most demanding." Fubuki spoke before leaving. Reiko and Yukimaru nodded before following in tow behind him.

IIII::::IIIIII

On a plateau that oversaw the valley that went straight to the Fortress of Trysting, Irene and Taro didn't like the amount of enemies that were widespread across the terrain.

"With so many out there, there's just no way that we can bypass without someone seeing us." Irene remarked. "And it looks like the odds are heavily stacked against us too."

"We have Jin, Monique, Emiria, and Mick at least. Everyone else are also good fighters too." Taro replied.

"I know but remember, even the strongest have certain limits." Irene spoke. "Power alone isn't enough if you don't know how to use it properly."

"Everyone is going to be taking part in this right?" Taro asked a little nervously.

"That's correct." Irene answered. "Don't worry too much. The adults came up with plans so we should be okay."

"Oh okay." Taro answered as he leaned against the rock that he was sitting against.

While she may have pacified Taro, Irene couldn't help but whisper to herself. "Or this could be the shortest offense of all time."

While Irene and Taro continued to talk, Alastor was sitting not far away from the pair in meditation while blindly moving a series of Geo Symbols in order to create the needed tile formats that he would be using for the upcoming assault. The only spells he planned to use were the Invincibility, Critical Hit, Reverse Damage, Warp, Silence, No Entry, and Damage 20% but not all of them at the same time. Rather, the Geo Master would only be utilizing combinations to better divide and conquer the hordes that stood in the way to Fortress of Trysting. The three had been there all morning, keeping an eye out on the enemy strength while waiting for the others to handle the two major threats that could hit them from behind. Once the Geo Master finished creating the specific patterns, he decided to take a breather before he heard a pair of footsteps that he looked up to see Taro and Irene approach him.

"Taro just came up with a suggestion that I think you should hear." The Freischutz Archer spoke.

"Well, we have stocked a lot of chloroform and hard liquor for the Dark Assembly meetings but even after we got all that we needed, there is still so much in the warehouse." Taro began. "I was thinking that we could probably use them to hinder the enemy force that's ahead."

Alastor's eyes widened. Why the heck didn't he and the others thought of that? Taking the key from his necklace chain, the Geo Master pointed it into the air before a door materialized and then opened.

"Go ahead and take all of them out." Alastor spoke. "Since we have plenty of time, it shouldn't take too much to make use of them."

Taro and Irene beamed at Alastor before entering the warehouse through the door. A moment later, the pair came back out with crates of chloroform bags and bottles of hard liquor. The Geo Master waved his Sage Staff, conjuring gas masks and gloves.

"Ah, when I was a tyke, I used to make this type of missile that exploded and released a sleeping cloud." Alastor spoke in a rather fond manner before he brought a set of directions for Irene and Taro to follow. "Now just follow the directions and you both will be fine."

After putting on the safety equipment, the three went to work in creating a number of large missiles.

As the sun began to set, Alastor noticed a ragtag group approaching them before seeing Jin and Monique leading them. From where they were, the Sword Master and Space Knight noticed the Freischutz Archer, the Geo Master, and Taro were working on something. Next to them were three large crates containing what looked to be rockets made of cardboard and aluminum foil.

"About time you guys showed up!" Alastor called out.

"What are you making?" Emiria inquired.

"Well, Taro suggested that we use chloroform and hard liquor to even the playing field a bit." Irene answered. "If we can put as many of the enemies to sleep between here and the Fortress of Trysting, it'll be easier to make our way through."

"Making a sleep-inducing fog?" Reiko asked.

"That's the whole purpose of it." Alastor answered before he, Irene, and Taro finished the last rocket before placing it in the crate. "Unfortunately, we used up all the Hard Liquor and Chloroform that was in the warehouse so Dark Assembly meetings will require different approaches."

"I still have a large stash of Chloroform secured back at the Prinny encampment." Trent spoke. "I can arrange transfer anytime it's needed at the Dark Assembly."

"I think kicking the daylights out of the senators is better entertainment and the best way to get your point across." Mick remarked. "Anyways, are you planning to launch the rockets first?"

"That's what we're hoping to do before using wind magic to direct the sleeping fog as far as it can go." Alastor replied.

"This may be even better than I thought." Jin remarked. "Alright, the first move will be yours, Alastor. Elise, Trent, and Monique will use the winds to direct the fog. Once the enemy hordes are asleep, we hit them with our most powerful skills at long range before mopping up any survivors."

Hearing the proposed plan, agreement was unanimous with the exception that the execution would start once the sun was mostly out of sight. The time spent would be recuperating and preparing for the assault. Given that the majority of the group had been fighting earlier during the day, it was necessary to give them a reprieve before making the final run.

IIII:::IIIII

Zenon watched with contentment as Adell decimated the last threats to her in Veldime with ruthless brutality. It would be some time before the demons that they had slaughtered much earlier return from the dead but there was nothing that neither Zenon nor Adell couldn't handle.

Brushing the dust off the black corset that was part of her skintight leather attire, Zenon turned towards the possessed Adell.

"Sloppy, Adell. You can finish the slaughter much faster than that!" the Goddess of Overlords snapped.

"Pardon my incompetence, milady." Adell spoke while kneeling on one knee and bowing low.

"Let us make haste now to another realm of the netherworld." Zenon ordered before vanishing in a burst purple and black fire with Adell in tow.

Within the Goddess of Overlords, there was another being that was very much alive. Rozalin was lost in the darkness of Zenon's being, floundering about as she tried to find her way to the light. The horrid memories that followed the awakening of the soul that was the Goddess of Overlords had been traumatic to her mind. Though Rozalin had experienced the wild lawless of the netherworld ever since she met Adell, these memories were just too extreme as she had seen her friends being killed by her own hand while her alter-ego had been controlling the red-haired demon-hunter. The new flood of memories of what was going on at the current time made her even more desperate to escape the darkness around her.

"It's no use trying to escape." A feminine voice spoke. It sounded like her voice except it had darker overtones and even echoed. The darkness around her was slightly illuminated by a faint purple light and Rozalin turned to see that it was Zenon, who looked almost exactly like her except that the latter had platinum-blond hair, paler skin, and black eyes with crimson irises that were brimmed with rage.

"You and I are one and the same so it's pointless to deny your true self." Zenon cooed in an older sister manner. "After all, you wanted power."

"To save my friends, not slaughter them!" Rozalin snapped.

"So you say but everything has its price; my power and your freedom of will. An equal trade-off I must say." Zenon continued, much to Rozalin's irritation.

"You may look like me, talk like me, smell like me, and maybe even think like me but I know the truth that I am nothing like you!" Rozalin declared with conviction, glaring at Zenon. "You may be the Goddess of Overlords but there will come a time when your power shall wane!"

Zenon looked at Rozalin with amusement. "That's tough talk from a bookworm beauty that has been spoiled by privilege for most if not all of her life but I doubt you pose any threat to me. After all, your denial to the truth of us being one and the same is futile. You will eventually see why."

Before Rozalin could answer, Zenon vanished entirely, leaving the blonde surrounded in darkness once more.

IIII::::IIIII

I know that things like Bombs and Chloroform can't be used in game-play but I figured that being innovative and unorthodox with what you have can make a difference between victory and defeat.

Also, those special skills that were used came from Yoroiden Samurai Troopers. Well, those scrolls have to have something good to learn.


	9. Chilling For The Night

Note: I don't own Disgaea 2

Well, it's been way too long since I stopped by.

III:::III

The dark bliss of unconsciousness was peaceful enough to spare Adell from what his possessed self was engaging in but that only came after seeing the atrocities committed. Being trapped within his own mind and unable to control his own actions had driven him mad to rage against the binds of his mental prison. But all of it was to no avail and he ended up wearing himself out severely, losing consciousness in the end.

But amidst the silent darkness, a faint voice called out his name and Adell was drawn from his stupor the moment his ears caught it. Slowly but surely, the voice called out his name again, only this time it was getting closer and it sounded femininely familiar yet his mind couldn't exactly place recognition.

"Adell." The voice called out again before Adell opened his eyes to see, to his complete shock, that it was Rosalyn. It wasn't the Goddess of Overlords but the actual Rozalin that he had, even though he would never admit to it, become attached to during their journeys through Veldime and beyond.

"Rozalin, is it really you?" Adell asked.

"It is." Rozalin replied, her eyes full of sorrow yet had a glimmer of joy. "I didn't think things would turn out this way."

"I'm really sorry about killing you." Adell said.

"It's not your fault." Rozalin replied, shaking her head. "I should apologize for what I did once she took over."

"You weren't in control of yourself." Adell countered. "There's nothing to forgive."

"But I am guilty. I wasn't strong enough to stop her!" Rozalin protested.

"Then maybe I'm guilty of the same thing in not stopping myself too when we fought." Adell said. The logics in their arguments had some similarities even though the situations between them were different.

"Let's not dwell on what had happened." Rozalin finally spoke. "Whether or not you got involved, the result would've been similar in the end."

Changing the subject, Adell then asked. "How are you able to talk to me though?"

"Do you remember the summoning ritual that your mother used?" Rozalin asked and Adell nodded before the blonde continued. "Well, thing is that the bond dissolved when you killed Zenon the first time but it later created a new bond of sorts when she possessed you before performing another ritual to inhabit a new body. Whether she forgot about it or just didn't care, I don't know but it somehow saved your soul from defilement even if your mind and body were taken when she rewrote you into being her vassal. Otherwise, you wouldn't be capable of self-thought like you are now. Your memories of the past and everything that defines your being are still there but being used to help fuel the false memories and the new being that Zenon had personally installed."

"So I'm being used by some dark entity she placed into me." Adell muttered.

"Adell, even though you've lived as a human and always believed yourself to be one, there is no denying that you are a demon or at least have some demon heritage." Rozalin replied. "What you have either neglected or didn't know about is what Zenon is now exploiting."

Silence followed as Adell thought over about what Rozalin had just said. In a way, while he had been surprised by this revelation, it did make sense on why the curse created by that fake Overlord didn't affect him. There was also the ridiculous title "Badass Overlord" that had been stamped onto his profile when he had beaten up that oversized talking red book. In some way, Adell had defined himself as a human and everything pertaining to that aspect of his existence had been replaced by the elements that made him a demon, bringing forth a hidden side that he himself had never suspected of possessing until recently.

"So I'm stuck in limbo while Zenon uses my demon side to wreak havoc in the living world." Adell said bitterly.

"More or less." Rozalin replied. "But even so, you are still connected to your body just as much as I am connected to Zenon. Since she made you into her vassal, the master-servant bond allows us both to speak to each other at least."

"Any idea on what happened to the others?" Adell asked.

"I don't know although Zenon's memories show that they didn't take part in the battle when the Overlords attacked." Rozalin replied, leaving Adell to ponder on their fate.

III:::III

The huge salvo of flying rockets had been potent enough the moment they hit the ground, stunning the hordes of demons before most of them fell asleep after inhaling the chloroform fog. Those that managed to resist the initial barrage were quickly eradicated by long-range fire from Irene, Monique, and several others that were placed into the role of cleaning up the field of active hostiles.

On the ground, Jin and Mick moved through the field, executing their sleeping foes with utmost precision. Not far away, Reiko and her group were very much doing the same, turning the area into a literal killing field stained in crimson. Thanks to the preparations and preemptive strike, the whole operation had gone easier than expected and the path to Trysting was clear.

At the front gates of the fortress, Jin and his group found themselves face-to-face with the glowing blades of the Sunrise Swords wielded by several Heavy Knights that were serving as road guards.

"You have to pay the toll. Six hundred thousand Hell Dollars per person and your weapons will be confiscated." One of the guards spoke.

"How about eight hundred thousand on the condition that we keep our weapons?" Jin countered, aware that some of his comrades were subtly preparing a response of their own.

"Are you jesting?" The Heavy Knight inquired fiercely, bringing his weapon to bear. The other guards followed suit and that would be the biggest mistake they made as Monique, Trent, Elise, and Alastor quickly combined their magic to create what would nearly amount to the largest sleep-inducing spell that would rival even the one that the legendary Senator Morpheus could conjure.

"Weapons away." Jin ordered and everyone complied before moving through the entrance gate. Entering the town, the group noticed the stares being sent their way as though they were strangers from a foreign land. Some women were ushering their children inside, men stood on guard while watching them, and the elderly looked timid at the sight of them. It was a quiet atmosphere, filled with tension and anxiety.

"You'd find more cheer in a graveyard." Alastor muttered quietly.

Perhaps it was bad luck that followed them the moment they entered the city. When seeking lodgings, the inns turned the group away in succession despite the fact that they had money to pay. The innkeepers looked very intimidated while giving immediate rejections before Jin led the group towards the mountainous areas of the city.

"They're afraid of someone." Fubuki remarked. "Who is it that rules Trysting?"

"I noticed one of the newspaper clippings at the Iota Inn saying that Lord Hanse had been killed." Elise replied. "Someone named Lady Cardashi has taken over a few months ago."

"Excuse me?" a feminine voice spoke and everyone turned to see a young Bow Mistress from the Archer class approach. "Would you all like to come to my father's inn? We have room and are willing to have you all as guests."

"Sure thing." Irene replied, pleased to see a fellow archer. "I'm Irene."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Amora. I hope we can be friends." The Bow Mistress answered before turning to Jin and the others, whom gave their names.

As the two girls chatted up on a variety of non-important things while leading the group, Jin signaled to Fubuki, Reiko, and Yukimaru to keep an eye out for stalkers. Both Mick and Emiria covered the flank. Time passed before they arrived at a very large manor that looked suited for the aristocratic class in room and board.

"Father! Are you there?" Amora called out as she entered with everyone behind her.

A minute later, a blond-haired man in simple attire with a long coat and glasses emerged. Irene tensed, recognizing the person as a Ranger. Though the war was long ago, the enmity between the Archers and the Rangers still remained.

The Ranger merely glanced at Irene with a cool neutral gaze before looking at everyone else. "I am Keith and I welcome you all to my home. I'm sure the journey has been taxing so please make yourselves comfortable."

Turning to Amora, Keith then said. "Please show them to the guest quarters."

"Yes, dad." Amora replied before leading everyone upstairs.

Only Irene remained at the entrance, staring at Keith. "It's interesting to see a Ranger have an Archer for a daughter."

"Perhaps but Amora wanted it and my wife encouraged her decision so it was fine with me. The sins of the parents shouldn't be passed onto the children." Keith replied before turning and leaving Irene at the entrance.

Looking at the stairway, Irene ascended, wanting to know where she and the others would be staying in.

IIIII::::IIIII

Even though they both had gotten to know each other well beyond the parameters of mere dating, Jin still had that shyness when it came to Monique, who seemed to be the more dominant character in their relationship. The Space Knight's forwardness was a bit aggressive, somewhat atypical amongst females although the Sword Master had seen the traits amongst some Magic Knights and Valkyries in another netherworld.

He had been relaxing within the hot spring pool that was obscured by large bushes, thinking more about the situation in Trysting before finding someone joining him in the water. It was Monique and the busty beauty was in sans clothing condition as she relaxed next to him.

"Still thinking about the next moves?" Monique asked, stretching her arms above her head while arching her back such that she gave Jin a good eyeful of her exposed ample bosom. "My face is up here or is there something on my chest?"

Jin blushed before averting his gaze. "Um…anyways, I'm just thinking about what went on when we came into Trysting. Hostile guards and innkeepers that refused to accommodate us despite our large cash offers."

"That does seem very odd." Monique replied before smiling coyly. "But we can talk about that later. After all that fighting in the field, I need to unwind badly."

If the Swords Master could turn a beet red, then he was close to doing just that. Jin did recuperate from being stunned to ask. "Right now?"

"Of course, silly!" Monique replied before pulling Jin to herself, lips locking in a passionate kiss. Though surprised by Monique's forwardness, Jin returned the kiss before moving south down her body, going underneath the water. Closing her eyes, the busty blonde relaxed against the edge of the pool, the water up to her neck as her breathing became irregular and coupled with the soft moans that escaped her lips. The smile on Monique's face showed more than carnal satisfaction amid the serious skill that Jin was showing right now in pleasuring her. Lost in the mixture of lust-laced emotions that she had for the Swords Master, the Space Knight was unaware of a certain small rock that was enchanted near the edge of the pool.

II::II

In a hot spring some distance away, Catalina, Emiria, and Asagi were bathing and looking at images in the water provided by the Clerical Saint. All three were blushing at what was going between Jin and Monique, the latter enjoying the receiving of some real pleasurable highs.

"You know, I'm actually torn between fainting and glaring in jealously." Catalina spoke, breaking the silence. "Jin sure knows how to pleasure a woman and drag her into a world of screaming bliss. No wonder I can sometimes detect Monique's scent strongly on him."

"Why are we exactly spying on them again?" Asagi asked.

"To see who wins the bet." Emiria replied, a bit embarrassed but still smugly satisfied. "I wagered that they would go to their extremes. Catalina thought it would be just a simple bathing together and you thought Jin would leave to let Monique bathe in peace. Looks like I'm the winner here. Both of you owe me a hundred thousand Hells."

Asagi and Catalina grumbled before the latter dispersed the magical window that displayed the images.

"You know, I'm surprised that you and Mick haven't gotten beyond first base yet." The Clerical Saint remarked.

"Unlike Monique and Jin, we are both more professional." The Iron Maiden replied. "Well, I think Jin is also professional too but he just can't say no to Monique when she gets into those sensual moods."

Asagi and Catalina laughed a bit in amusement, the latter then sighing a bit as she changed the subject. "So anyways, any idea who this Lady Cardashi is besides the sole ruler of Trysting?"

"I did a bit of research from a template someone left in the room." Asagi said. "Apparently, she has a habit of ruining men that she courts by stealing their fortunes via clandestine means and then killing them. I guess the last ruler of Trysting must have been an idiot to fall for her wiles. Since she took over, Trysting has its Marie Antoinette running the place. Her armies are formidable and the populace doesn't dare cross her."

"Do you think we should get involved in Trysting's affairs?" Catalina asked.

"It depends but we're in the Land of Carnage to search for the legendary weapons and get strong enough to fight Zenon once we return to Veldime." Emiria replied. "Honestly, I don't know what we can actually do here.

In a cold spring far away, both Reiko and Yukimaru bathed in silence under a freezing waterfall. Neither one of them seemed affected for their training to be kunoichi meant being able to withstand the frigid elements. The waterfall came from a glacial river that split two. On the opposite side of the rocky wall, Fubuki was in deep meditation within the second freezing waterfall, thinking about a variety of issues. Neither of them had to speak for in meditation, their minds could convey thoughts when in the right state within the freezing water. There was going to be trouble arriving soon but what it could be remained unknown.

IIII:::IIII

Given that the outdoor springs had been taken on a first-come first-served basis, the rest of the group had to use the bathtubs and showers. And even so, there was the unequal sharing of hot water.

Mick was still shivering from the cold water, mentally blaming Sara, Hawkeye, Irene, and Taro for hogging the hot water. While Elise, Trent, and Alastor also shared the misfortune of cold water, their magical skills allowed them to make it a short-lived liability.

Standing outside on the grounds of the manor, Mick looked at the stars, lost in thought at first before footsteps drew him back to reality and he looked to see Hawkeye.

"Yo, man." The Gunner greeted.

"Getting some fresh air?" The Battle Master asked.

"Yeah although I'm also looking around to see if there are any discrepancies in the manor's defenses." Hawkeye replied.

"You think we're going to be attack or something?" Mick inquired.

"Given the kind of government being run in Trysting, it's a possibility although Keith's estate is on the fringes of the domain." Hawkeye answered. "Before he went to tend to his wife, Keith explained that Lady Cardashi doesn't pay much attention to the fringes of Trysting, leaving them to fend for themselves most of the time. Those armies we took out today were regular bandits that tended to raid the areas."

"I see." Mick remarked. "Given on what is known about Lady Cardashi and the oppressive state of Trysting's inner regions that we saw, I do wonder…"

"Don't bother chasing ideals." Hawkeye replied. "When idealism and reality meet, it is reality that rarely backs down. Besides, we're not here to cause trouble."

"Unless trouble finds us like at the gate." Mick said before sighing. "Still, I guess you're right as I doubt it would be smart to run amok like a loose cannon."

A moment of silence passed before Hawkeye began to leave for the exit.

"Hey, where are you going?" Mick called out.

The Gunner turned around and tossed an envelope to the Battle Master, who caught it. "Going to see my girlfriend, she just came into the city and is waiting at the Yamamoto Market. If Jin asks, the envelope has a map of the place."

Mick shook his head yet couldn't help but think that Hawkeye was just begging for something to happen and drag everyone into it in some way.

IIII::::IIII

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